Snapshots
by ConfusedColumbia26220
Summary: A love story spanning decades, if Swan Queen were to happen in the real world. Regina is a successful business woman with a ticking biological clock. Emma is a heartbroken woman who lost what little she had and has to make a hard choice regarding her pregnancy when faced with unexpected circumstances. Five years after both women made major life changing decisions - they meet.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: I initially wrote this a couple years ago for English class, of all things. It's going to be completed, exactly as the original left off. I purposely didn't edit for typos, of which I am certain there are a few, as I wanted to publish this in its entire original form, flaws and all. I might be persuaded to write a sequel if that is something people are interested in. This is entirely AU - no curse, and as it was written for school, no smut.**

Regina tapped her foot anxiously. She was beginning to question her decision to bring out her Toshiba Portégé 3010CT laptop out to the park to type up her report. She needed sunshine, she thought. She needed fresh air. The one teeny little problem? Babies.

There were babies everywhere. In strollers, on the playground, in their parents' arms. Silent babies, loud babies, sleeping babies, playing babies, crying babies. Babies, babies, babies. The worst part was that she wasn't even annoyed at their presence. No, the worst part was that with each baby she saw, her biological clock made another tick.

Tick. Tick. Tick. Regina was pushing 30 and remained childless. With every year that passed, it would make her yet another year older when her prospective child turned 18. Even if she miraculously managed to have one before her 30th birthday, that would put her at turning 47 the year her child turned 18.

"I can't find my mommy," she heard a sad little voice say.

She looked away from the report she was no longer focused on to see a small African American girl, probably no older than three, standing right by the bench she was sitting at. She slowly closed her laptop. "You can't find your mommy?"

The young girl shook her head, rubbing a fist against a teary eye.

"Alright," Regina replied kindly. "How about you come sit by me and you can tell me what she looks like?"

The young girl hopped up onto the bench and Regina looked around for anyone who looked like they were missing a child, assuming the mother was also African American.

"She's pwetty," the girl spoke.

"Yeah?" Regina continued looking.

"And she got wed hair."

"Angelica!"

The girl hopped off the bench. "Mommy!"

The woman that approached and swept the young girl up was definitely a pretty redhead, but not African American. She was very white.

"You're her mother?" Regina questioned curiously.

"In all ways but blood," the woman answered with some sort of Scottish or Irish accent mixed into a common New York dialect. She pressed kisses to young Angelica's cheeks and the girl clung to her like a koala. "I'm used to people's confusion by now. Adoption is the legal term, but it doesn't make her any less mine."

Regina smiled. "Well, she is one lucky little girl. I'm glad you found her."

The woman thanked her and left with her daughter. Regina watched them go, gears spinning in her head. She pulled out her Ericsson R380 cell phone. "Hello, Sidney? I have a question that I'm hoping you'll have an answer to, since you're a paralegal and all."

"Uh oh, do I need to be worried about my best financial executive assistant friend's career?"

Regina laughed. "I'm your only financial executive assistant friend. And no, the bank is not heading toward bankruptcy, if that's what you're thinking. I have a question about the adoption process, specifically, how long it takes."

"Hearing those tell-tale ticks, huh?"

"Oh, shut up! Answer the question, please." It really sucked being the only person in her friend circle without children. The teasing was evil.

"Well, the process depends on quite a few things. It should go faster than average for you because you are clearly a responsible and financially stable human being. High status has its perks in the adoption world. But there are other factors that affect the timing. There's the age you're looking for, whether you're open to all ethnicities or not, if you're willing to adopt siblings, whether it's an open or closed adoption…"

"What's the difference between open and closed?" Regina asked.

"When it's open you meet the biological parent or parents and have access to medical history and contact info. The biological parents can choose to stay in the life of their child in some way although they're surrendering custodial rights. It can be pictures and letters, or scheduled supervised visits with the child with the adoptive parent or parents present. They could also choose to remain essentially strangers. With a closed adoption, they do remain strangers. The adoptive family has no access to contact information of any kind or the biological family's medical history. Not even the birth certificate is available, all records are sealed. You won't know them and they won't know you."

"I see…" Regina chewed on her lip thoughtfully. "Could you give me a ballpark timeframe if I were to give certain parameters?"

"If you're specific enough, I probably could."

"Only child, newborn, any ethnicity, status as either open or closed is fine, either gender."

"Assuming that's just within the states, that could take anywhere from six months to two years for you."

"Yes, I was thinking just within the states," Regina confirmed.

"Were you just curious, or are you seriously considering adopting?"

"Both," Regina found herself answering.

"Well, I can get an application to you, and if you chicken out you don't have to do anything with it."

"Gee, thanks. It's great to know I have friends that are so confident in me."

"For what it's worth, you'd be a rockstar in the mothering department."

"Thank you. Well, I better get back to that report I'm busy not writing."

Sidney laughed. "Okay, I'll let you go. Best of luck, Regina."

* * *

Emma was heartbroken. She had been a foster child her entire life and had never been adopted, so she gave up hope and ran away once she turned 16. She had met this wonderful young man while attempting to steal a car of all things, for shelter more than transportation. She had gotten in easily enough, but he popped up out of the backseat, startling the hell out of her. Turned out he'd already done the stealing for her. She couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness that she had stolen a stolen car.

The young man's name was Neal, and he was only three years older than her. They became partners in petty crime, stealing just what they needed to get by, always looking out for each other and never getting caught. They never stayed in one place for very long, and whoever owned the car they had stolen apparently didn't care enough about it to report it.

It didn't take long for the two to fall for each other, and a few months after Emma's 17th birthday, she ended up pregnant. It scared the hell out of her, but Neal eased her fears. They could and would do this together. They would be a real family. He would take the first job he could find, even if payment was under the table, and the petty crime would stop. He'd take care of her and the baby.

It is amazing how much a baby on the way can motivate a person. Neal got a good job in no time, using his powers for good and taking his car knowledge to become a mechanic. Within a couple weeks he had enough money to rent a small apartment, and a couple weeks later he surprised Emma with a ring. If they were going to be a real family, they had to make it official. Emma had never felt so wanted in her entire life or so close to being a part of a family. They made plans to marry late into her pregnancy, soon after her 18th birthday in April the following year.

Unfortunately, Emma's hopes of being part of a family as a wife came crashing to a halt just three days before Christmas. It was the mark of her 18th week when she got the most devastating phone call of her life. Neal had been working beneath a car when a wheel slipped off a jack, pinning him down. They had called an ambulance and gotten him out from underneath the car as quickly as they could, but when the paramedics arrived, there was nothing that could be done. His boss offered to send his last earned paycheck in her name with a couple extra hundred thrown into it, saying he could rarely get Neal to shut up about how excited he was to get married and be a father.

Emma wasn't about to turn down the money, but it would only be a small cushion. She was already frantically calculating the cost of rent in her head with how much Neal typically brought home in paychecks, and even with the extra couple hundred she would maybe squeak through the next month and a half before finding somewhere else to go.

She had no idea how to raise a baby and now she was going to have to do it alone. She looked down at the ring on her finger, knowing she couldn't even sell it because it wasn't fully paid off. When she could bear to part with it, she would simply have to return it to the jewellry store Neal had got it from, and she doubted she would get any sort of refund from it.

Emma spent the holidays that were filled with joy and cheer for most other people heartbroken, grieving, alone, and stressed. The only reason she even ate was for the baby, she couldn't bear anything happening to him as well. The gender hadn't been revealed, but she just knew it was going to be a him.

The more time passed and the closer the due date loomed, Emma realized she had a very difficult decision ahead of her. Would she raise her baby as an 18 year old single mother who had dropped out of high school and had no job and likely end up in poverty and homeless or resorting to living in shelters, or would she give her baby away for adoption and hope with every fiber of her soul he didn't slip through the cracks the same way she had? It wasn't an easy decision to make, and she struggled with it from the moment she realized what her options were. She changed her mind a lot over the last leg of the pregnancy, on her birthday she refused to even think about it, even though she knew she likely had less than a month to go.

When her water broke and she went into labor, she still had no idea what her game plan was, and when labor hit, there was no room for any thoughts besides getting to a damn hospital. Every minute felt like an hour, sometimes her contractions were as painful as the movies made it look, and sometimes she didn't even feel them. All sense of time was lost as she tried to keep up with instructions she found to be very contradicting, not to push, push, take deep breaths, take shallow breaths, take my hand if you need to…  
She had no idea when she went in or how long she was there anymore, she was so exhausted she could barely remember her own name. All she knew was that on May 15, 2001 at 8:15 AM her baby -

"It's a boy, Emma!"

All she knew was that on May 15, 2001 at 8:15 AM her baby boy was born.

The doctor snipped the cord, got the baby all cleaned up and checked out. "You have a very beautiful and healthy 6 pounds 8 ounces baby boy." She smiled. "Do you want to hold him?"

Emma nodded and tried to sit up a bit, but the doctor shook her head and pushed a button to raise head half of the bed instead. Then she handed him to her.

"Oh my goodness," Emma whispered, eyes tearing up right away at the sight of him. He really was beautiful. And those eyes...those were Neal's eyes, she was sure of it. "Hello, there." She smiled at him and very lightly caressed his soft little cheek with the tip of her finger.

"Do you have a name for him?" the doctor asked.

Emma felt like a stone dropped in her stomach, her decision coming to her without warning. She had nothing prepared for a baby. No diapers, no crib, no clothes...nothing. She couldn't raise him, not alone, not the way he deserved. "I...can't." She looked up at her, a tear rolling down her cheek. She shook her head sadly. "I can't be a mother. Someone needs to contact an adoption agency."

"Are you sure, Emma?"

Emma nodded. "It's what's best for him. His father died and I just turned 18 not even a month ago. I have no other family. He deserves a better life than I will ever be able to give him."

"Well, you won't be able to leave for a few days and we like to keep newborns overnight a couple nights anyway, so you can have a couple days with him while we contact an agency and get him placed in a home. Do you want an open or closed adoption?"

"What's the difference?" Emma asked.

"An open adoption allows you to meet the adoptive family and stay in contact with the child on whatever level and terms you agree upon. A closed adoption means you don't meet them or know who they are, and they don't know anything about you either. All records are sealed."

"I can't risk him not being given a proper home because people judge me, think I'm too young, or am some sort of street rat or something… He should be chosen for him, it should have nothing to do with me."

"Closed adoption, then?"

Emma nodded.

"I will look into it. And you can always change your mind until you sign your custodial rights away."

"Thank you." Emma looked down at her son again, knowing it wouldn't be hard for anyone to fall in love with him if they gave him a chance. "You'll be better off without me, little one," she whispered before pressing a lingering kiss to his forehead.


	2. Chapter 2

Regina's quicker than usual home study had already been completed , but choosing a child to adopt was not easy. Very few closed adoptions with newborns had come her way as options, and she had met tons of pregnant women and even teenagers looking for an open adoption, but she always found some sort of fault with them. Some seemed to be looking for someone more like a nanny than an adoptive parent, and that didn't sit right with her. One lady asked if she minded if she smoked, and she was full term. Regina had to use all her willpower not to berate her. She wanted the birth mother to be someone who took care of their body while pregnant.

After months of turning down women and parents and by proxy, the baby they were adopting out, Regina realized she couldn't do open adoption. She didn't want to let anyone have visitation rights with her kid, especially if they weren't responsible. So what if she didn't have access to medical history and contact information? She needed to be concerned with her child's future, not their past. She clearly couldn't do that with an open adoption, as she found something to judge about everyone who came her way. Maybe that was selfish, but her 30th birthday had already come and she didn't want anything to be uncertain. What she won't know won't hurt her, and with any good luck, won't hurt her child either. She could just get her baby checked out by a doctor as soon as they were legally hers, and any potential health problems could be dealt with and discussed then. She didn't want to spend the next five years sending people away because she was too judgmental. 

Closed adoption it is. She called the agency that was working with her and told them of her decision to only focus on closed adoptions as she wasn't getting anywhere with the open ones. They made note of it and told her they would only give her notice when new closed adoptions came up.

Her friend Kathryn laughed at her when she told her of the new development. "You're too picky!"

"I know," Regina groaned. "It's a huge character flaw!" 

"But a perfect mothering trait. Babies are like pets, you think you choose them, but really, they're the ones that choose you. You just haven't been given the right opportunity yet, but you will. They just literally haven't been born yet." 

Regina smiled. "How is it you know just what to say? All the time!" 

"Because I'm flawless, dahling!" Regina could imagine a dramatic hair flip punctuating that.

"You really think I'll make a good mother?" She asked, almost insecurely. 

"Of course. You're responsible and fun, the best combination for a mom. Any child would be lucky to have you." 

"Well, now I feel bad for turning so many away…" 

"You weren't turning the kids away, you were turning mothers with bad habits away who probably still wanted some sort of contact with them after birth, but not enough to raise them themselves. I probably wouldn't want someone that smoked or drank while pregnant to be around the child afterwards, either. Who knows what developmental problems they've already given them because of it. " 

"The sad thing is with a closed adoption, I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference, and it won't matter, even if there are health issues. Something about knowing in advance, though, it turns me off from even giving them a chance." 

"Gina, you can't adopt the entire world, don't beat yourself up for turning down those you had very good reasons for turning down. Someone will adopt them, it doesn't have to be you, and health problems or not, they can still have great lives. They all fit with somebody, that somebody just isn't you. Yet. Be patient and open minded, you'll have your babe before you know it."

Kathryn was certainly right about that. On June 5th, 2001, at approximately 12:34 in the afternoon, Regina got the call that would change the rest of her life. 

"Regina Mills?" 

"Yes." 

"Hello, Regina. I am Aubrey Whittaker from Manhattan Forever Home Finders. I have a newborn who had been placed in a home on May 18th, who has just been re-entered into the system. It's a closed adoption, which is what I hear you're looking for."

"Why were they returned?" she asked curiously, wondering if something was wrong.

"Cried too much." 

Regina nearly laughed. "Oh, that's all? How...petty." 

"Are you interested? If not, we have a long list of clients that want newborns. 

"No! Er - I mean, it's not necessary for you to call any other clients. I'm ready for this." 

"Well, Miss Mills, the paperwork is ready to be filled out. You can spend an hour with him before making it official, or less if you know right away." 

"'Him'? A boy?" She was grinning so hard her face hurt. 

"Yes, a boy." 

"Should I be there at a specific time?" 

"Whatever works for you." 

"I will be there as soon as I can get there, then." Regina hung up and pressed the intercom on her work phone that connected to her boss's line. "I'm going to take my lunch break now...and probably the rest of the day off, too." 

"You sound giddy," Robert, her boss, commented. "What's going on with you?" 

"I'm going to meet my son!" she couldn't contain her excitement and was probably louder than necessary.

"You are?! That's great! Take the day and however long you need off, as well." 

"A-Are you sure? We're very busy - " 

"Regina, in the five years you've worked here, you've never taken a single vacation. Being a new parent is not a walk in the park, trust me. You will be grateful for the time off, I promise. If I'm wrong...I will shave off all my hair and go bald." 

"Well," Regina chuckled. "You're confident!" 

"Go, go meet Robert Jr." 

"Nice try!" Regina rolled her eyes and let the intercom go. She gathered her things and left her office, making sure to lock it up. She made her way to her car in record time, arriving at the adoption agency before 1:00 PM hit. 

She checked in at the reception desk and was given a room number. She was told a Selena Davis would be meeting with her. She made her way to room 536, waved in through the open door. 

"You must be Regina Mills." The woman stood and offered her hand. 

Regina took it. "Yes, I am," she confirmed. 

They shook and released hands. 

"Selena Davis. Have a seat." The woman gestured to the chair across from her own. 

Regina did so, habitually crossing one leg over the other. 

Selena sat as well. "Are you excited? I noticed you've been on file since last year." 

"I am. I just know I'll be leaving with my son today, even though I haven't met him yet. It just feels right."

"Then let's get the paperwork filled out now, and wait until you've met him before signing the contract and making it official. I couldn't tell you how many times people have said what you just did almost verbatim, only to leave alone." 

"I don't think that will be the case, but I can understand that. I won't object to waiting to sign the contract." 

Selena and Regina spent about 10 minutes reading over papers and filling in blanks with names and dates, discussing and clarifying what they meant. 

"Alright, are you ready to meet him?" Selena asked. 

Regina nodded enthusiastically. She saw Selena motion to someone behind her to come in and turned around in her chair to see. 

A woman holding a baby wrapped in a blue blanket walked in.

Regina's eyes grew wide and watery as he was handed to her, and she didn't need assistance to hold him correctly. 

"Wow. You're already a pro," Selena commented. 

Regina couldn't speak, she just smiled down at the adorable little baby in her arms. He was precious. She got lost in her own little world with him for a minute or two. When finally managed to look away, she announced, "This is my son. Henry." 

"Henry? That's not a name you hear a lot anymore." 

"It was my father's name. He passed some time ago." 

"I'm sorry to hear that." 

"It happened in the best possible way, there's nothing to be sorry about. I only wish he could be here to meet his grandson." 

"You're pretty set on taking him home, huh?" 

"I am taking him home," Regina answered simply. 

"Let's sign the contract and adoption certificate, then he'll be all yours. He's exactly 3 weeks old today, by the way." 

"So he was born May 15th. I'll be sure to remember that." Regina would never allow herself to forget her child's birthday. 

"I can take him so you can sign. What type of car do you drive?" the woman who had brought Henry in asked. Regina had already forgotten she was there. 

"Uhm, R107 Mercedes Benz 560SL," she answered distractedly. "Why?" 

"So I can find a proper car seat you can take him home in. Standard practice, most adoptive parents haven't purchased their own just yet." 

"Oh. Thank you." Regina had a hard time giving him back to the woman. Not because the task was difficult, but because she was already attached to him. She signed the contract and filled in the adoption certificate, choosing Daniel for a middle name, after her first love.

She wasn't kept waiting long after finishing the paperwork, and Henry was returned, all buckled into a car seat, fussing a little. 

"Well, Ms. Mills, I believe you are all set to go." Selena smiled at her. "He got all the standard shots he could get when he was born, but you should probably take him to a doctor within a week to see if there is anything new he needs, being nearly one month old." 

"I planned on getting him checked out as soon as possible anyway. If he has any health issues, I'd like to catch them as soon as possible." Regina stood and carefully picked up the handle of the car seat. "Thank you, so much." 

It was amazing how much a baby could bring out one's cautious side. She walked at about half her usual speed, which had nothing to do with the weight of the car seat. She drove at exactly the speed limit, no more, no less, and did her best to keep at least a foot of space between her Mercedes and the car in front of her. She stopped at the doctor's first, then went on a baby shopping spree. She already had some things, but there was so much more she felt she needed now that she physically had a baby in her possession. 

Needless to say, Regina got no sleep that night, her eyes glued to Henry the entire time just in case he needed anything, and also because everything was still surreal to her. She was a mother. She didn't feel any different, but her entire life had changed. Her son was just so beautiful and peaceful looking, how could anyone give him away? Not just once, but twice.


	3. Chapter 3

Being a mother drained Regina, while also filling her with energy. Her eyes were bright and shiny and she glowed even though dark circles were beginning to form under her eyes. She had no complaints, and was generally happy all the time. It creeped some people out. Her life began evolving around her son entirely.

Her friends called her to make sure she was still alive when they hadn't heard from her in a while, and all she could talk about was her son. He was everything. She had no idea how her parent friends even managed to be friends with her when she was childless, how they could talk about anything else. She was told she was in the honeymoon stage and that it would change, but she honestly didn't believe them. Henry just consumed all of her, and he was as necessary in her life as oxygen.

She did call her boss one day to profusely thank him for giving her time off, otherwise she'd be toting Henry to work all the time and her office would be converted into a nursery. He didn't doubt that. He asked her some questions about him and she was all too happy to answer them and fill him in, often talking in circles and repeating things because she forgot she'd already mentioned them.

It was exciting, and time flew. September that year was an especially sombering time, and she almost became a hermit, wanting to stay in her safe, protective bubble with her 4 month old and ignore the evils of the outside world. She was in awe of how the innocence in his eyes never faded, but her own eyes had grown noticeably dull in her reflection. She was lucky enough not to lose anyone that day, but a lot of her friends and co-workers weren't as lucky. Lots of phone calls were made and received to determine who was okay. The whole country was emotional and shocked, but it was pure hell for those actually living in New York. Paranoia skyrocketed. Regina wasn't sure if she'd be able to get through it if she didn't have Henry.

Slowly, people began to recover from the event, while knowing nothing would ever be the same again. By 2002, Regina was done being a paranoid recluse. Growing up to live in fear of the unknown was not what she wanted for her son, and the innocence that never faded from his eyes taught her a very important lesson - there were still good people left in the world. It was a new year and a new mindset.

Henry was about 8 months, two weeks old when Regina's 31st birthday came on February 1st, and she was so grateful to be able to say she was a mom this time, that she had spent it with her son. It was far less exciting than Henry's first birthday would be, however. She wanted to show him off to everyone, those who had gotten the chance to meet him and those who still needed to. She wanted to absolutely spoil her baby boy on his very first birthday. Not all his birthdays, just that first one.

After that birthday, it was time to get back to work. Having a year of paid time off was amazing, but she needed to start spending some time away from her son before they both developed separation anxiety. A year was longer than most maternity leaves, even unpaid. She was ready to earn her money again, though maybe not quite as much overtime as she used to. She researched the best daycares available that were convenient for her commute, and finally decided on which to register him starting the day before her first official day back to work. She needed to accustom herself to not being around him so she wasn't out of her mind when she was at work, and he needed to get used to being around other kids and adults that weren't her on a regular basis.

* * *

Emma's life without Neal and after giving her son away was horrible - until it wasn't. When she could no longer afford the rent, she swallowed her pride and made her way to a women's shelter. They were very helpful in assisting her getting back on her feet. They helped her get her GED, and it wasn't because she wasn't smart that she never graduated high school, it was too much bouncing around. City to city, state to state, she was all over the place and where she qualified as a Freshman in one district, another would consider her still an 8th grader. Of course, she didn't attempt school at all after escaping the foster system at 16, but she didn't feel the need after she found Neal. However, with Neal gone and no family, no one was going to take care of her but her.

Once she was finished with her GED, she started job hunting. She found a bail bonds company looking for new agents. The requirements were right up her alley - at least age 18, high school diploma or GED. It would take some extra education and training to get licensed, but it sounded like something she could do. Put up money to bail people out of jail, catch them if they skipped court dates. She was familiar with the grey area of legal illegal, and knew the types of places people like that would run to. By her 19th birthday in April of 2002, she was waiting for her exam results. If she failed, she could always take it again. But she had discovered she was excellent at financial math and she knew she had street smarts, so she wasn't worried.

She was investing in her future and making a better life for herself, even if that better life didn't start right away, it was at least within her grasp. She was licensed and taking 15% of whatever bond clients paid before her 20th birthday.


	4. Chapter 4

In 2003, Robert decided it was time to retire, which meant Regina was offered a major promotion. 

"Me?" Regina was stunned. "You want me to be the Chief Financial Officer? I just turned 32." 

"Yes, and you've been my Financial Executive Assistant since 25. You already do the same thing, this just gives you double your pay and your own Financial Executive Assistant, should you accept. People love you here, Regina. You'd make the bank even more successful than I could possibly dream to at my age. All this fast changing technology is hard for me to keep up with, but you're always upgrading your computers and phones or whatever whatchamacallits are coming out now. I think the oldest piece of technology you have is your car, which doesn't need to be upgraded because it's a beautiful, classic work of art." 

"I… Well, will you at least stay until I can find someone to be the new me?" 

"That may be an impossible feat, but I can stay until you find someone to take your position so you're comfortable with taking mine. Just don't take too long finding someone, the sooner I retire, the sooner I can focus on being a new grandpa." 

"You did give me an entire paid year off to be a new mother, I think I can let you retire soon to be a new grandpa. Congratulations, by the way! This is the first I'm hearing of this. Who's the new mommy or daddy? When was your new grandchild born?" 

Robert chuckled at her questions. "Annabelle had twin girls March 1st. She was meant to be a surrogate for a woman who wouldn't be able to carry children, but they grew close during the pregnancy and fell in love. If Massachusetts legalizes same sex marriage this year, they want to be among to first to be married." 

"Well, that is just the most adorable thing I've ever heard. I had no idea you were supportive. My respect for you just jumped up quite a bit." 

"Honey, this is New York. If you're not supportive, you won't have very many friends. People against gays also tend to be racist, and New York is too diverse to tolerate such attitudes. Life's too short to focus on the negatives." 

"I can only hope to be half as great a boss as you are. You...you've been like a father to me after mine died, it's hard to imagine not seeing you here every day." Regina couldn't help but get teary. 

"Hey, none of that." Robert hugged her. "Retiring doesn't mean I'll just disappear forever. You know I'll visit you and that adorable son of yours whenever you'll have me. I could even babysit the little man and my granddaughters at the same time, should you and Annabelle be okay with it." 

Regina laughed. "You're too awesome, Robert. Those girls have the best grandpa ever." 


	5. Chapter 5

June of 2006, Regina needed to go to Chicago for a business meeting, and Emma needed to go there to catch a client who had not only skipped on bail, but left the state without court permission. She had been given arresting permissions for whatever jurisdiction she found him in, in order to bring him back to New York. She hadn't been to Chicago before, so once she caught and returned who she was looking for, she decided to go back and enjoy the city. Getting 15% of bail money for the past few years gave her a nice little nest egg of spending money, and her schedule was completely flexible.

Regina sat at the lobby bar of a Hilton hotel. She didn't drink often, but that meeting had put her brain in a blender, and she had to leave Henry at home with a babysitter. It was the farthest she had ever been from him, and the timing of it just sucked. There were only a couple short months before Henry would be off to kindergarten, the beginning of his truly starting to develop a life independent from hers. He was already five, where did the time go? She was 35. She supposed the phrase, 'time flies when you're having fun' must have some truth to it.

"Is this seat taken?" A tall, young blonde asked her, gesturing to a stool beside her, although almost all the stools were open. Perhaps she just didn't want to sit alone.

"Not at the moment, but I'm sure it's about to be." Regina glared at her half full glass. Did she just flirt?! With a stranger? That wasn't something she did. Damn inhibition lowering concoction.

The young woman chuckled and sat in the stool next to her. "I'm Emma," she introduced herself.

"Regina," she introduced in return, having to stop herself from trying to shake her hand. It was habit after being a CFO for three years and a financial executive assistant five years before that. But this was a social setting, not a business setting.

"Business trip?" Emma guessed from the woman's attire. She was basically wearing a power suit with a skirt.

"That's what I was under the assumption it would be, but it's more like a mental endurance test to see how long my patience lasts."

"That bad?" Emma asked sympathetically.

Regina nodded. "My brain was sloshed before I even took a drink."

"Yikes."

Regina nodded again. "So...not a business trip?" she asked Emma.

"Initially, yes, but I've never seen the city before so I decided to come back and have more time to enjoy it."

"If you're here for the city, what are you doing at a hotel bar?"

"Well, it's a Hilton. A couple years ago I never would have even dreamed of being able to afford this, so I'm going to enjoy all the hotel has to offer, as well as the city."

"A couple years ago you were, hm, a minor, right?"

Emma rose her eyebrows in surprise. "A couple years ago I hit the legal birthday."

"Oh. My bad." Regina shrugged. She took another drink from her glass.

"Why, aren't you, like, 25?"

Regina nearly sprayed her drink all over the bar, but managed to swallow it down. She looked at Emma with wide eyes. "Thank you! I'm 35, dear."

"No way! You're lying!"

"Unfortunately not."

"Well, you definitely look 25!"

"I'm very flattered you knocked an entire decade off."

Emma frowned when she noticed Regina's left hand didn't have a ring on it. "Okay, how can a gorgeous woman like you not be married?"

"Oh. Well, there are two reasons. The biggest one is that I don't want to get married until it's legal for everyone to get married in the whole country, or at the very least New York. The other is that I haven't been in a relationship since I was probably about your age."

"Okay, well, the first part is amazing, but that second part is even sadder."

"Well, my boyfriend of eight years and my father died the same year, so… I haven't been in any hurry."

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Emma felt bad for even bringing it up.

Regina waved it off. "It's fine, and I'm fine now. It was a long time ago."

Regina's cell started ringing and she groaned, digging it out of her purse. "Are you kidding me?" she grumbled before answering. "Regina Mills. Yes, I have them. I will fax them over as soon as I get to a machine. You're welcome." She hung up and downed the rest of her drink.

"Got to run, huh?"

Regina smiled sheepishly. "Sorry." She put some money on the bar to pay for her drink. She grabbed a pen from her purse and took Emma's hand. "Don't be a stranger. I'd like to get to know you more when I'm not so busy." She wrote her number down on Emma's hand before leaving to find a fax machine.

Emma stared after her, stunned. She wondered if it was just for convenience, or if it was a sign she liked her. Or maybe it was the alcohol. But she liked to think it was the second option, because there had only been time in her life she had ever felt butterflies around someone, and that was with Neal. Until that day. June 26th. She'd have to remember the date, it could end up being very important.

Regina felt her heart racing as she left the bar. Uh oh. She was in trouble.

* * *

Emma waited most of the day before finally getting the nerve to dial that number on her hand.

It was 9:05 PM when Regina got yet another life altering phone call. "Hello?"

"Hi," Emma spoke shyly. "It's Emma."

"Hello, Emma."

"I wasn't going to call so soon, but I realized I have no idea how long you're going to be here, and I'd like to talk to you again in person before you go. When you're not as busy."

Regina smiled. "At the rate this is going, I'll be stuck here 'til August. But the plan is to check out July 5th."

"We've got time, then," Emma concluded.

"Plenty of time," Regina agreed. "If you want to see the best of the city, you need to get to the Navy Pier on the 4th. Riding the Ferris Wheel and watching the fireworks is probably the most amazing thing you can do in Chicago. I can keep my phone off all day and go with you so you don't get lost, and we'll get more time without risk of being interrupted. We could do things before then, too, but I can almost promise it will be cut short."

Emma felt frozen in the best of ways. That sounded like a date, and it was a holiday. Someone wanted to be with her on a holiday. Someone possibly wanted to go on a date with her on a holiday. She was so excited. "That...sounds fantastic."

"Excellent! Let's do that, then. And now I've got your number, too, so you don't have to worry about interrupting important meetings."

"Cool. Well, I'll let you go so you can do whatever you need to do, and I'm going to take advantage of not needing to work and get some extra sleep."

"I envy your ability to get extra sleep right now. But sleep well."

"You too, when you get there."

They simultaneously hung up.


	6. Chapter 6

July 4th seemed to take forever to arrive, but at the same time got there really quickly. Regina kept true to her word and had her phone turned off all day except to call Emma and set up a time to meet in the lobby before going out on their adventure.

It was a warm day out, so Emma wore a tank top, shorts, and flip flops, while Regina wore a halter top, miniskirt, and sandals with a slight heel. Both had their hair pulled back in ponytails.

"The Pier's a ten minute drive from here. Mind if I drive since you don't really know your way around?" Regina asked.

"Oh, I'm totally okay with that."

Regina's rental was a Mercedes Benz 2006 C-Class, silver. She didn't have a whole lot of choice, most rental companies liked to use the newer cars, and having something by Mercedes Benz was the closest she was going to get to having something remotely similar to her own car.

"This is nice." Emma whistled when she saw the car.

"Yeah, not as awesome as my classic beauty, but still a Benz." Regina got the doors unlocked and held the passenger side door open for Emma to get in first, then closed it once she was inside. She proceeded to get in on the driver's side. "If it's too warm I can turn the AC on," she told her. "And don't forget your seatbelt. Last thing I need is a ticket in a rental car."

Emma laughed. "I'm already strapped in."

Regina looked. Indeed she was. "Oh. Well. Good." She shook her head at herself and put her own on before starting up the car. "You can turn the radio on if you want, just don't turn it up too loud. Don't want to blow the speakers."

Emma nodded and turned it on, fiddling with the stations until she found a song she liked. She began singing along: Because of you/I never stray too far from the sidewalk/Because of you/I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt/Because of you/I find it hard to trust not only me but everyone around me/Because of you/I am afraid…

Regina joined in with the next verse: I lose my way/And it's not too long before you point it out/I cannot cry/Because I know that's weakness in your eyes/I'm forced to fake/A smile, a laugh every day of my life/My heart can't possibly break/When it wasn't even whole to start with…

Emma looked at her when the song ended. "You like Kelly?"

"Like her? I was voting for her since American Idol started."

"Really?!" Emma grinned. "I wasn't able to after every episode, but I voted a few times toward the end. For Kelly, of course."

Regina was soon finding a place to park at the Pier. Or attempting to find one. It was a very popular attraction in Chicago, and July 4th was probably its' busiest day of the year. She wouldn't want to be quoted on that, but it was a pretty good guestimate.

"Woah. There's a lot going on here. It looks expensive." Emma had enough money to be comfortable with a little splurging on a vacation, but this looked beyond her means.

"If you're worrying about money, don't. I can afford expensive."

"I...I don't want to impose…" Emma stammered.

Regina finally found a place to park and pulled into the space, cutting the engine when she was sure she was inside the lines right. She looked at Emma. "I invited you. Spending money on my friends is what I do."

"I'm your friend?" Emma asked, surprised.

"For now." Regina unbuckled her seatbelt and exited the vehicle, taking the key with her.

Emma blushed, convinced now that this was a date.

* * *

The best time to see the fireworks on the Ferris Wheel was at night, Regina had said. So, as they waited for the sun to set, they filled their time with mini golf and checking out some of the Pier's restaurants and gift shops. It was about an hour's wait in line for the Wheel for what would only be a seven minute ride, but it was worth it.

Worth it didn't even begin to describe the experience. The ride may have only been seven minutes long, but the loading and unloading took at least five minutes each, so they around fifteen minutes sitting time. The best view was at the top, spectacular even without fireworks, so the presence of fireworks was absolutely magical.

"This is beautiful," Emma whispered in awe.

"It is indeed." Regina smiled at Emma's reactions. She almost enjoyed them more than the fireworks.

Emma looked at her, catching her eyes. She swallowed as her mouth went dry. The moment of truth was here. It was time to ask the question she didn't want to ask, she was afraid about what could happen if the answer wasn't the one she was hoping for. She couldn't wait any longer, though. "Regina?"

"Yes, Emma?"

Emma took in a deep breath, summoning all the bravery she could. "Has this, everything today… Is this a date?"

Regina took in her own breath as she gathered her thoughts, but realized her answer must be taking too long because Emma's eyes were beginning to lose their hopeful sparkle and starting to look sad. She needed to do something to fix it quick, since Emma was preparing herself for rejection. So Regina gently cupped her cheek, wasting no more time on hesitation as she closed the distance between them, softly capturing her lips.

Emma's eyes closed the second she felt Regina's lips touch her own. She returned it just as softly.

Regina broke the kiss after a moment. "Yes," she murmured her answer. She brushed her thumb along the skin of Emma's cheek.

Emma smiled widely, overwhelmed with happiness. "I… am so glad you said that." She covered Regina's hand with her own, and slowly pulled it away from her cheek so she could lace their fingers together and hold her hand.

Regina smiled at that. "I'm glad you decided to sit by me at the bar."

"I'm glad you gave me your number at the bar."

Regina giggled. "That was rather impulsive of me, wasn't it?"

"It probably was," Emma agreed. "But I'm still glad for it."

Regina gave her hand a squeeze. "Me too."

A particularly loud burst of fireworks made them return their focus to the sky, though they never let go of each other's hand. Emma's head gradually found its way to Regina's shoulder as they watched. Not long later, the Ferris Wheel actually began moving for the ride. Emma kept her head where it was, comfortable. Regina smiled at their closeness, happy Emma could make herself comfortable with her so quickly. It had been so long, she had nearly forgotten what cuddling with anyone other than her son felt like.

When it was time to get off the Ferris Wheel, it was getting late. "I've got to get up at 6:30 in the morning to shower, check out, return the rental, and catch my flight on time," Regina told her with a sigh, not wanting to return to the real world. "So we should probably get back to the hotel."

Emma pouted. She didn't want Regina to leave. "We probably should," she reluctantly agreed.

"I - um - I normally wouldn't even suggest this on a first date, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't, anyway… but these are special circumstances, so… " Regina looked at Emma. "You can stay in my room tonight, if you want to."

Emma tackled her in a hug, squeezing her tight. "I'd love that!" She wasn't ready for their date to end.

Regina hugged her back. "Let's go, then."


	7. Chapter 7

Regina slid her keycard into the reader of room 308 and listened for the click before opening the door and taking her card out.

"You have a Hilton Honors room?" Emma questioned in amazement.

"I do," Regina answered. She gestured to the open door. "After you?"

"Thank you," Emma walked inside and turned in circles, taking it all in. "This is so cool! I thought my suite was pretty good, but damn!"

Regina hung the 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the door handle before closing and locking the door. "Alright, before we go any further, we need to talk about a few things." She moved to sit on the couch.

"Yeah, Okay." Emma moved to sit beside her, but didn't invade her personal space.

"I, clearly, have money." Regina crossed her legs. "Is that going to be an issue for you?"

"Oh! No, not at all. If anything I just don't want you to feel like I'm after it. I do have a nice little nest egg of my own, just not a luxurious amount."

"What do you do?"

"I'm a bail bondsperson. If people skip court on bail that I provided them, I get to go chase them down and return them to custody. I get 15% of the bail amount, so if bail is at $3,000 the client pays $450 that I keep, and the other $2550 is given to the client from the agency. That's what the court gets."

"Ah. A less talked about yet hugely important part of the legal system. I've been a Chief Financial Officer for over three years now. I've been getting six figure annual salaries ever since. So, that settles money. Next, I'm twelve years older than you."

"The age difference doesn't phase me one way or the other."

"I have a son," Regina moved right on to the next topic.

That actually was an important factor. "How old is he?"

"Five."

"That's not too bad." Emma smiled. "You definitely look as amazing as you did six years or so ago."

"Oh, I've never given birth. I adopted him when he was a baby."

Oh. "I have a confession to make…"

"Oh?" Regina was confused by that sudden statement.

"I really hope you won't judge me for this."

Regina reached and took her hand. "As long as you're not about to confess to murder, I won't judge you."

Emma squeezed her hand. "Okay… I have given birth, once. I gave the baby up for adoption."

"May I ask why?"

"That requires telling you my entire life story pretty much in one sitting."

"I'm listening." Regina rose Emma's hand to her lips and gently kissed it.

"Well, I never had a permanent home. I was practically an orphan my entire life. Even if my parents weren't dead, I never knew them. I was in the foster system, bounced all over. A family kept me until I was three, they gave me back when they had their own baby. That was my longest home. After that, I had good homes and bad homes, but mostly bad. Sometimes I had siblings, sometimes I didn't. Sometimes they truly treated me like one of their own, sometimes I was just a meal ticket, sometimes I was abused. School to school, city to city, state to state, I was bounced around too many times to count. I had enough of it when I was sixteen. I ran away and stole to survive.

"One day I was stealing a car, and I was startled when a guy sat up in the back seat. He had already stolen the car. It was embarrassing and ridiculous. We stuck together, partners in crime. Then, later, partners in other things. We fell in love, even though I was sixteen and he was nineteen. When I was seventeen, I got pregnant. It was the first time I ever had sex, and we used a condom, but it broke. I was scared, but Neal encouraged me and calmed me down. He promised we would be a family and got himself a good paying job as a mechanic and we were able to rent a small apartment within a couple weeks. A couple weeks after that, he proposed to me. I was so happy, I felt truly wanted, and I was. I was ready to be a wife and mother. We planned on getting married in April after my birthday, before the baby was born. Everything was perfect.

"But then, three days before Christmas, and the mark of the 18th week of the pregnancy, I got a phone call that changed my life forever. It was Neal's boss. There was an accident at work, he'd been pinned under a car he was working on. By the time they got there, the paramedics couldn't do anything to help him. His boss was kind enough to put what he'd earned of his paycheck in my name, with a couple extra hundred dollars added to it. That gave me a month and a half's worth of rent before I needed to figure out where I could go. I couldn't sell the engagement ring, and I couldn't keep it. Neal hadn't finished paying it off yet, so I returned it. I realized my choices were to keep my baby and risk the both of us living in poverty and depending on shelters since I had no family to rely on, or giving him up for adoption and praying he didn't get trapped in the system the same way I did. I couldn't make up my mind throughout the entire pregnancy. I didn't know what I was going to do until I had given birth to him. I held him and looked at that beautiful face, and I just knew I couldn't be the mother he needed at that time. I wasn't prepared for a baby, without Neal, I had no way to support one. I asked for a closed adoption so I could give him his best chance. It took three days to work everything out with an agency and to match him to a family. I got to spend those three days with him in the hospital, telling him I loved him over and over, apologizing repeatedly for letting strangers take him. Even now that I can stand on my own feet, there are still so many women that are better mother material than I am. He's five by now, too." Emma had tears streaming down her face and her chest hurt, they were all still painful memories.

A couple tears escaped Regina as well. The poor woman had been through hell her entire life. "When was he born?" she asked curiously.

Emma sniffled and recited the date she would never forget, "May 15th, 2001." She wiped at her eyes, trying to calm down. She didn't want her emotional baggage to push Regina away.

Regina's eyes widened. "That's when my son was born!" She started digging through her purse and pulled out her wallet, flipping it open to show Emma a picture of Henry she'd taken on his fifth birthday.

Emma's hand flew to her mouth to cover a gasp as she struggled to fight off more tears. Her breath caught in her throat. He was so much older than when she last saw him, but it was him. She looked at Regina with surprised eyes. "He looks so much like Neal…!"

Regina smiled a watery smile. "I adopted your son," she whispered. It was all so surreal.

Emma nodded. "You adopted my son!" She hugged Regina tight again. "Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you…" She was so grateful that he'd found a home, and with such an amazing woman.

Regina hugged her back, amazed that this was even happening. When Emma finally pulled back a little, she looked at her and said, "I know you came here to see Chicago, but you how would you like to come back with me and see Henry again?"

"Henry… Awww, that's such a cute name!" Then she realized what Regina had just said. "You want me to come home with you?"

"Why not? Henry should know his mother that gave him life, and you should be able to watch him grow up. He starts kindergarten soon, so there's not a lot of time left before he starts becoming independent. I can get you a plane ticket for my flight right now."

"Are you sure? I don't want to screw anything up…" Emma's insecurity was at a raging high.

"You won't. I promise." Regina kissed her. "You'll be perfect."


	8. Chapter 8

"Mommyyyyyyyyyy's hooooooome!" Little feet came tearing through the living room to greet Regina at the door, immediately throwing his arms around her legs as soon as he saw her. "Missssed youuu!"

Regina bent down and swept him up into her arms. "Mommy missed you too, little lovebug." She hugged him close and pressed kisses all over his face, leaving lipstick marks everywhere.

Henry wiggled and squirmed. "Aaaaah, sticky cooties!"

Regina laughed.

"Welcome home, Regina," Kathryn emerged from hiding. "And guest," she added as she noticed Emma's presence. She looked between the two of them and a gleeful grin took over her face. "Shut. Up!"

"I -" Regina started to say.

"Shut! Up!" Kathryn went over to Emma and drug her further inside, slinging an arm around her. "That woman right there is my best friend, and you must be pretty damn special if she went to Chicago for a business trip and brought you back with her!"

"Kat - " Regina just shook her head, face growing red.

"So, the rules are, you break her and I'll break you, you make her happy and you'll be my best friend too, and if you get married I get to be the Matron of Honor."

"Kathryn! Leave her alone before you make her run away. We've got an important meeting."

Kathryn frowned in confusion. "Oh." She released Emma. "My bad. I could've sworn…"

Emma went back over to the safety zone near Regina.

"Henry," Regina turned so her son could see Emma. "Do you know who this is?"

"Mommy fwend?"

"And something else, too. Do you remember when I told you I'm not your only mommy?"

Henry nodded. "You told me a Mommy and a Daddy made me for you so you could be my Mommy."

"That's right." Regina smiled. "So, do you know who she is?"

Henry looked confused. "My...other Mommy?"

"Yes, very good Henry. Now say hi and give her a big hug because she hasn't seen you in a very long time and she missed you."

"Okay," he replied obediently. "Hi." He smiled shyly at Emma before feeling his mother hand him over to her. He gave her one of his biggest, bestest hugs that he knew his mommy liked.

"Hi, Henry," Emma whispered, overwhelmed with emotion as she hugged the small child that had grown so much since he was a babe.

Kathryn's eyes were bugging out of her head. "Regina!" she whispered and waved her over.

"Yes?" Regina chuckled at her best friend's expression.

"If that's really the woman who gave him away, why does she get to meet him?"

"Because she's a good person and if circumstances had been kinder to her, she never would have given him up. And I think we're starting to fall for each other."

Kathryn grinned. "Well, let me know when the wedding is!"

Regina rolled her eyes. "Go home to your own family, leave mine alone."

Kathryn laughed. "Damn. I guess you really are falling in love." She kissed her forehead. "Have fun with your family." She walked over to the door. "Henry, Auntie Kat's going home now. I'll see you later, though!"

"Kay! Bye bye, Auntie Kat." Henry waved with one hand, still holding on to Emma.

"Blondie," Kathryn whispered.

"Yeah?" Emma asked.

"Take good care of that one for me." She nodded to Regina.

"Of course." Emma nodded.

Kathryn slipped out the door, then.

"Sorry about that," Regina apologized once her friend was gone. "She thinks she needs to be my substitute father."

"Oh, I don't mind. I think you're lucky to have so many people who care so much about you."

"I suppose I am." Regina smiled at the two of them. Life was definitely getting interesting.


	9. Chapter 9

Even though they shared a kid and their meet cute was accelerated due to being out of town, Regina and Emma still needed to take time to know each other in the real world. Neither of them truly knew what the other was like on a day to day basis just yet. Both were busy women, in their own ways. Henry would always bind them together as their child, but they needed to work on a relationship independent of him.

That meant more dates. Dates where they could talk with few distractions. The pedestrian walkway of the Brooklyn Bridge was perfect for that. It was good exercise, too, being just over a mile long meant walking both directions was just over 2 miles of walking on the bridge, not counting walking to and from.

It wasn't very cold in July, and it wasn't too crowded or loud, depending on the time. Evening was perfect, so that's when Emma and Regina went.

It was easy to just stroll along while holding hands, comfortable.

"Were you born here?" Emma asked curiously.

"In New York? No. My parents were vacationing in Quebec and I surprised them. But New York has always been my home. My mother was born here, but her parents were from Sicily. My father was born in Puerto Rico."

"Woah! That's so cool! Quebec born Sicilian Puerto Rican New York native, you are."

Regina laughed. "Well, that's a mouthful." 

"I wish I knew my heritage. All I know is I was born in Maine, I'm blonde, and I'm white. It would be cool if my parents were from Spain or France or something, but… I'll never know." 

Regina gave her hand a squeeze. "That's alright. It's all just trivia in the end. I think you already know what your most important quality is."

Emma was curious what she thought that was. "Which is…?" she prompted.

Regina looked at her. "You're a survivor. You essentially raised yourself. And when you lost the one person you finally had to lean on, you did what you could to make your life better, even if you couldn't support a child just yet."

Emma blushed. "Wow, uh, you're an excellent listener. Thank you." 

Regina smiled. "You're welcome."

"So...I pretty much blabbed my life story to you all at once, but I don't know half as much about you," Emma stated. "You obviously don't have to tell me all at once, but I'd like to know more about this amazing woman who adopted my son." 

Regina chuckled. "What do you want to know right now?" 

"Hmm… What did you want to be when you grew up?"

Regina shook her head. "I'll tell you...but don't laugh at me." 

"Why would I laugh?! Everyone had impossible goals at some point."

"Okay…" Regina sighed. "I was in love with the Rockettes. They were flawless and the dancing was just superb. I wanted to be one since I was about five. Then, somewhere around age fifteen, I realized all of them were tall, blonde, white women. Things I would never be."

"Awww, why would I laugh at that? That's sad!" 

"But it's okay, I have a higher salary than they do. And my feet aren't dead from overuse, so it worked out." 

Emma laughed. "I love how you just take things in stride."

"That's definitely a work in progress. A lot of that's come from the past five years, being a parent and a CFO makes you choose your battles carefully."

"I can only imagine. I don't know how you even have the time, and now you're integrating me into your schedule on top of it."

"Well, you have to have more of a life than just your career. That's partially why I adopted Henry. I practically lived at work, and all my friends had their own kids and families. Being an honorary aunt and even godmother just wasn't the same. Wasn't enough. Because I did have so many friends, I wasn't lonely enough to be desperate for romance, but I wanted someone to love and care for. I wanted a child long before I adopted Henry, but I always thought that required a partner. Having one alone didn't occur to me for a long time. It wasn't that I was afraid to do it alone, I just never thought it was an option." She paused to formulate her next thought before continuing, 

"Now that I have that, I want more. I don't need more, but it would be nice. Being single for over a decade takes a toll. Now that I have what I wanted for so long, needed even, I want to be able to share it with someone. Someday I'll be retired, and Henry will be an adult, any other children I might have will grow up… Even if I feel I don't particularly need it now, I don't want to end up old, alone, and regretting not giving love another chance."

"Wow," Emma breathed. "I understand that completely. I feel a lot of those things. Some I've felt for a long time. I'd love to be that person for you. I don't want to miss any more of Henry's life than I already have, either." At some point, they had stopped walking. Emma lightly caressed Regina's cheek with the back of her hand. "Even if you hadn't been the one who adopted Henry, I'd want to know you. You are one of the kindest people I've ever met, you've never once judged me, even knowing about my past. You haven't done that condescending pity thing that so many do, either."

Regina nuzzled into her hand. "No one likes to be labeled a victim," she murmured. "Or seen as weak. You are neither of those things."

Emma kissed her gently, amazed she had found someone so perfect. Doubly amazing, that someone so perfect adopted her son. She couldn't be happier for that little boy. She could never regret giving him up, because she was the one who got him. Regina's energy was like a hug to her soul.

Regina lingered in the kiss, resting her hands on her waist. She was still in awe of Emma. Of her existence, of her interest in her, of how they met despite what must have been very low odds. She was surprised at how easily she could open up to her, but knowing so much about Emma already was likely a big help.


	10. Chapter 10

September 4, 2006 came too soon. Henry's first day of kindergarten. Regina and Emma both accompanied him to the school, each holding one of his hands. The Blue's Clues backpack he wore was stocked with everything on the list, plus extras, just in case. He was enrolled for the full day schedule, so he also had a Ninja Turtle lunch box packed with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a packet of apple slices, a handful of grapes, string cheese, and a small carton of milk. Regina figured it best to have something in case the lunch and snacks provided were things he didn't like. His tastebuds seemed to be ever changing, but she knew everything in that lunch box was something he liked.

Emma was grateful to be included in this first. She had spent some more time with Henry, and he seemed to be more comfortable with her, but it was clear he viewed Regina as the authority figure. If he was unsure of something, Regina was the one he asked. If Emma thought he was doing something that might get him in trouble, she had to ask Regina if he was supposed or allowed to be doing that. There were only a few times where he actually did get in trouble. Emma was slowly beginning to learn what was okay and what wasn't, but she felt she wasn't learning quick enough to keep up.

"Do you want us to walk you to class?" Regina asked Henry. They had reached the main doors of the school.

Henry shook his head. "I'm big boy!"

Regina chuckled. "Yes, you are." She fixed his hair. "Do you remember what I told you?"

Henry recited, "Listen to teacher, be quiet unless called on or play time, ask before going to bathroom."

"Good job! High five." Regina held her hand so it was within his reach. She was surprised when Henry's hand hitting her own made it sting. He was getting strong. "Hugs?"

Henry gave Regina a tight, but short, hug. He did the same with Emma, then started to pull the door open.

"Wait a second."

Henry paused and looked at his mother.

"I should be able to pick you up, but if not, it will be Emma."

"Okay!" Henry finished pulling the door open and dashed inside.

Regina stopped the door from fully closing and called in, "No running!"

Henry immediately halted and then continued at a normal pace.

Regina watched him go and let the door close before looking at Emma. "Is that alright? I just volunteered you…"

"Yeah! It-It's fine. You'll probably be able to get him anyway, right?"

"Probably…" She looked at her curiously. "Are you sure it's alright?"

"Yeah. I...I just haven't really been alone with him before, you know? Not more than a couple minutes, anyway, or without you in the same vicinity," Emma rambled nervously.

"Oh." Regina hadn't realized that. "Well, you'll be okay. He adores you. When you're gone, he asks when you're coming back."

Emma's eyes watered. "He does?"

"He does," Regina confirmed. "Don't you get all watery on me now, I've barely been holding myself together since he said he didn't want to be walked to class. I was expecting him to be afraid to let go, but he let go so easily…"

Emma took her hand. "Well, you better hold yourself together. You have to be at work in twenty minutes, and you can't go in looking like a raccoon."

Regina laughed. That was plenty motivation. She couldn't ruin her makeup.

Emma smiled. "So...since you couldn't walk Henry to class, may I make up for it by walking you to work?"

Regina's heart made a happy leap. "I would love that."

They started walking away from the school together.

"Do you want to meet me somewhere during my lunch break?" Regina offered.

"I'd like that. Have somewhere in mind?"

"Somewhere near the bank, obviously. I think there's a little pizza place nearby. Today feels like a pizza day."

"Yum! I'm in. I feel like it's been ages since I had pizza."

"Then pizza it is." Regina smiled at her. "So, I'll call you later to let you know whether I need you to get him for me or not."

"Sounds good." Emma nodded, even though she was still nervous about it. She was far less nervous when Regina was around. A few moments passed in companionable silence. "Isn't it strange that we just met barely over two months ago? It feels like it's been so much longer."

"Well, being around kids tends to make time freeze and speed up at the same time. These past five years have gone by so fast, but I savored almost every moment."

"That's how I felt for the three days I had him. It was gone in a blink, but in the moment it felt like there was all the time in the world."

Regina gave her hand a squeeze. "I'd like to hear more about those three days sometime. I didn't get him until he was three weeks old. Exactly three weeks old. I can only imagine he was a bigger the first time I saw him than he was the last day you'd seen him."

"I can't say I'll be able to get through it without turning into a human waterfall, but I can try. Later. I believe we have reached your destination."

"Aww." Regina pouted. "That walk was too short."

Emma smiled, finding the pout adorable. She also felt a certain fuzziness inside knowing Regina, at least for the moment, would rather be with her than at work. "I will see you at lunch." She cupped her cheek and kissed that pout off her face.

Regina looped her arms around her neck and savored the bliss while she could before she had to enter the work world.

"Go get 'em, boss lady," Emma encouraged when the curse broke.

Regina reluctantly stepped away from Emma and made her way into the bank. Emma stayed back and watched until she disappeared into the building before leaving herself.

* * *

Henry could not stop talking about his first day at school and his teachers and new friends the whole way back home, both women ending up having decided to pick him up together. Regina was proud and glad he was so enthusiastic, but still sad this was the beginning of a part of his life that didn't include her. Emma was just amazed at how fast the five year old could talk when he was excited and how much he could say before needing to take a breath.

"Ms. Mar-get had us draw our family," Henry announced when they reached home. Once inside, he proudly produced his drawing from his backpack. He held it out to them.

Regina took the paper that had a drawing of three stick figures. Henry in the middle, the shortest one, with brown hair and a big smile. The left side had a taller stick figure with long black hair and red lips, even wearing heels. On the right was another taller stick figure with blonde crazy curls and pink lips.

"Is that supposed to be me?" Emma pointed at the blonde one, eyes filling with tears. The style of the hair wasn't quite right, but that wasn't what mattered.

Henry nodded vigorously. "Family."

Emma was overwhelmed with emotion. This sweet little boy, who she had given birth to and given away years ago, considered her family. "Oh, Henry…"

"Do you like it?" Henry asked, worried.

"Of course I like it! I love it!" Emma knelt down to his level and held her arms open. "Come here."

Henry stepped up to her and she wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug.

Regina's heart was warmed by the scene. She was so glad Henry had accepted Emma so quickly, and that Emma was getting time with the son she had given up to give him his best chance. Henry would always be the most important person in Regina's life, but Emma was on her way to becoming the second. It seemed all good things did come to those who waited. She had to discreetly wipe a tear away as the hug broke and Emma rose to her natural level. "My turn." She scooped Henry up into her arms before he could even think to say anything, squeezing tight. "Me too, Henry. It's beautiful." She pressed kisses to his cheek.

Henry squealed with laughter and kicked his feet before hugging Regina back. He squirmed when he felt he was being held too long. "Down, Mommy!"

Regina chuckled and put him back down on his own feet, releasing him.

Emma's phone rang. "Swan," she answered. She sighed. "Again? Alright, I'll go catch him." She hung up and looked at Regina with apologetic eyes. "I've got to go track someone down in Jersey."

"It's alright, it's your job. Just be safe, okay?" Regina had a busy schedule of her own, she couldn't blame Emma for having one, too.

Emma nodded. "Of course."

"Henry, Emma's got to leave now," Regina informed.

"Awww." Henry looked up at Emma with big, pleading eyes. "Do you have to?"

Emma was slain by those eyes. "Afraid so, buddy. But I'll be back, you know that, right?"

Henry nodded firmly.

"Want to do me a favor?" Emma asked.

Henry's eyes widened, excited that he could be helpful. "Yeah!"

"I want you to take care of Mommy for me while I'm gone. Can you do that?" Emma winked at him and smiled at Regina.

Henry nodded again.

"Awesome! That's what I like to hear." She held her hand up to him. "Hi five?"

Henry slapped her hand with his own.

Regina cleared her throat. "Henry, go put your school things away while I say goodbye to Emma, alright?"

"Okay." Henry took off to do as he was told.

Once he was gone, Regina closed the distance between herself and Emma. "You be careful out there," she told her, taking her hands. "I'd very much like you to come back to us."

Emma smiled at her concern. "I will! You won't even know I'm gone."

"Of course I will. I'll miss you."

"There's still phones." Emma squeezed her hands.

"I know." Regina nodded. She kissed her softly. "But I can't do that over the phone."

Emma laughed. "I will have plenty of kisses for you when I come back." She pulled Regina into a hug. "The little man says I'm family, so who am I to say otherwise?"

Regina chuckled. "That was the sweetest thing I've ever seen. I think I'll put it on the fridge." She rested her

head on Emma's shoulder. "Can I stall you for just five minutes?" she asked hopefully, not wanting her to go yet.

"Just five minutes," Emma caved. She kissed the top of her head.

The next five minutes was spent just hugging while both tried to forget Emma had to leave. Alas, those five minutes inevitably had to end.

"I really should be going." Emma slowly released Regina.

Regina lifted her head. "Okay." She kissed her cheek. "Go get 'em," she winked as she referenced what Emma had said before she went into work that morning. Similarly, she watched Emma go until she was out the door.


	11. Chapter 11

It was nearly Halloween of 2006 before Regina and Henry saw Emma again. Emma greeted Regina as promised with a kiss after knocking on her door. Regina was so surprised it took her a moment to process. 

"What took you so long?" she whispered breathlessly as the kiss broke. 

"My mark jumped the Canadian border, so it took extra long to get the jurisdiction to bring him back to New York. I should have called more often, but I was trying to get through the red tape as quickly as possible." 

"Well, you're here now." Regina smiled. "I was having Henry get ready for bed, but I know he'll love to see you. Want to come with me to tuck him in?" 

Emma nodded enthusiastically. She didn't live there, but she felt like she had just come home. 

Regina took her hand and quietly led her inside, closing the front door behind them. 'Be very quiet', she mouthed to her before making her way to the stairs. She never let go of Emma's hand as she ascended the stairs. 

Emma was walking on tiptoes to be silent, enjoying the feeling of Regina's hand in her own again. 

"Henry," Regina called when they reached the top of the stairs. "I hope you're in your pajamas and that your teeth are brushed. I have a surprise for you, but you won't get it unless you're completely ready for bed!" 

"I'm ready!" Henry called insistently from his bedroom. 

Regina made her way to his room and motioned for Emma to move against a wall where she couldn't be seen, so Regina could poke her head inside the door to check on him. "Okay, it seems you've earned your surprise. You'll get it in just a moment." She closed the door again and looked at Emma. "Give it fifteen seconds," she whispered, taking a step back from the door. 

Emma waited fifteen minutes before opening the door and stepping inside. 

Henry jumped up out of bed so fast he almost tripped over himself. "Emmmmm-maaaaa!" He ran to her and crashed into her legs, squeezing the life out of them. "You home!" 

Emma grinned. "That's right, buddy." She stroked along the top of his head. "Did you get taller?" 

"Yup!" 

Regina stepped into the room. "Two inches," she supplied. 

"Wow! You're going to be taller than us soon, Henry!" 

Henry laughed. "Nuh-uh. You giants." 

Emma looked at Regina questioningly, who merely shrugged. She returned her attention to Henry. "Mommy and I are going to tuck you in tonight. How's that sound?" 

Henry looked at Regina with puppy dog eyes. "She just got here! Do I have to?" 

"Yes, Henry. You have school in the morning." 

Henry grumbled. "Fine. Can she tell a story, then?" 

"You'll have to ask her." 

Henry put the puppy dog eyes on Emma. "Will you tell me a story?" 

"I...I'm sure I can think of something." 

"Yay!" Henry zoomed back to his bed and hopped in. 

Regina made her way over to his bed and Emma followed. 

"You know the drill," Regina told Henry. 

He laid down, allowing Regina to fix the blankets around him the way she always did. She gave him a hug and kissed his cheek goodnight, which he reciprocated. Emma watched, hoping she could become just as good at that one day. 

When it was clear Regina was finished with the usual ritual, Emma cautiously took a seat on the edge of the bed. "What kind of story would you like?" 

"Any!" 

"Any kind, huh? Alright…" Emma launched into a tale on the fly about a dragon and a lion that became best friends. She kept talking until he fell asleep, and then she pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. 

"Good job," Regina smiled. 

Emma carefully got off the bed, hoping the movement wouldn't wake Henry. She smiled back at Regina and followed her back out the door. 

Regina closed his bedroom door with a soft click. "Will you stay here tonight?" she asked quietly. "It's been nearly two months." 

"Aww, you missed me that much?" 

Regina nodded. "I want more time with you before I go to work. We're in the middle of a major client crisis, so I've had to be working through lunch lately." 

"Then I'll stay here tonight. But I'll sleep on the couch. We only met four months ago and I've been gone half that time." 

"Understandable." Regina made her way to the stairs and began descending them. 

Emma soon followed after her. "So, what do you have in mind since Henry's asleep?" 

"We can watch a movie. Or have one on and talk over it. I just want the time with you." 

Emma smiled. Once on the ground floor, she took her hand. "I missed you, too. By the way. A lot." 

Regina led her over to the couch and sat down, prompting Emma to sit beside her. Regina turned the TV on and put the volume on low so it would be mere background noise.

"No more two month long trips, okay? Not until next year at least," Regina requested. 

"I'll try. I'm not planning on going anywhere any time soon." 

Regina pressed a kiss to her knuckles. "Good. Henry and I are both very attached to you."

Emma hugged her. "If I'd known it would take me nearly two months to get back, I wouldn't have gone. I thought it would be maybe two weeks, tops."

Regina relaxed in her arms. "Well, I'm glad you made it home safe." 

"Home?" Emma questioned, looking at her. 

Regina blushed. "You know what I mean." 

Neither woman realized they were tired, but less than five minutes had passed before they'd fallen asleep, innocently cuddling on the couch.


	12. Chapter 12

Holidays flew by. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, and - halt at Valentine's Day, 2007. It was the first in years Regina wouldn't spend being single, and Emma's first with anyone since Neal's death.

Though it was clear sparks flew from the moment they met and they had been on dates, it took time for them to officially label themselves as a couple. There was a child involved, and though he was technically both of theirs, if anything went downhill it would still affect him. A clean break wouldn't hurt him as much, but there wasn't any kind of break in sight.

They had been spending New Year's Eve together in Time Square, the only way to spend it when you lived in New York, when Emma started to seem very anxious at 11:55 PM. 

"Are you alright?" Regina had asked, a bit concerned. 

Emma blurted, "Will you be my girlfriend? Officially." 

Regina was stunned and confused. "Wha -?" 

"I want to be official before 2006 ends. I've always wanted to have a midnight kiss on New Year's. With someone I really care about. With you. But we need to make it official first, because I don't want to end the year without being able to say you're my girlfriend. I also don't want to spend a single second of 2007 not being your girlfriend." 

Regina's eyes got watery. That had been one of the cutest things she'd ever heard come out of an adult's mouth. "Of course," she whispered with a smile. "Of course I'm your girlfriend." 

Emma grinned, and not long later the countdown to the ball drop and 2007 began to start. As soon as they heard '10', they sealed the new official relationship status with a kiss, not parting until everyone around them was going wild in celebration to welcome the new year. 

February 1st, 2007 was Regina's 36th birthday. Emma didn't even know until she heard Henry tell her happy birthday. 

"What?!" Emma lightly nudged her shoulder. "Why didn't you tell me your birthday? You know mine!" 

"Because…" Regina faltered. "Well, mine stopped mattering once I got Henry." 

"Nuh-uh. That's not gonna work on me. Especially since he just told you happy birthday." 

Regina sighed.

"You know the age difference doesn't bother me. But seeing as I've had no time to plan, like, anything to celebrate it...Valentine's Day will just have to be extra special. And you don't get to say no because that day is just as much about me as it is about you." 

"Okay." Regina could give her that. 

That gave Emma time to plan the most epic, romantic Valentine's Day/birthday combo she could manage.

And then, starting the 12th, a snowstorm hit. It carried on into Valentine's Day. On the plus side, it trapped Emma at Regina's, Henry's school canceled classes, Regina couldn't get to work, and Emma already had the gifts she planned to give her, luckily on her person and not at her place. On the negative side, they couldn't do what she had planned because they couldn't really go out, and they wouldn't have the privacy.

Regina joked, "You created a snowstorm just for me? Awww, you shouldn't have!" 

Emma snorted. "Yes, because being snowed in on Valentine's Day was exactly how I imagined celebrating it." She shook her head. 

"I'd rather be snowed in at home with you and Henry than stuck at the bank, any time." 

"Well, I happen to have your gifts with me, shall I give them to you now?" 

Regina smiled. "I'll allow it." It was the least she could do when they couldn't do anything Emma had clearly worked hard on planning. 

Emma disappeared briefly and returned with a couple tubular wrapped gifts. "This isn't all, I just want you to open these first," she told her. 

The first one Regina unwrapped was a poster for a Puerto Rican beach, held protectively by the cardboard tube it came in. The next one was also a poster, but this one showed the flag of the Sicilian Kingdom. "Emma…" she whispered, trailing her fingers along the glossy paper.

"Heritage is important, and you're lucky enough to know yours. Now, in spirit if not in person, your parents will always be with you." 

Regina made sure both were back in their protective tubing before giving Emma a tight hug. It was less the posters but what they represented, and that someone with Emma's background had the strength to do that that made Regina happy. "Thank you, Emma." She kissed her cheek. "I have no idea how your chest contains that giant heart of yours."

Emma smiled. "I'm so glad you like them. I've never really got anyone gifts before, so I was really worried they would suck." 

"No, of course they don't suck. They're from you! And it's always the thought that counts." Regina smiled back at her. 

"There's a couple other things." 

"I'm sure I will love them, too." Regina let go of her so she had the space to move.

Emma retreated once more and returned with something that wasn't wrapped. "It might be really cheesy, but I've always wanted to do one of these." She handed Regina a customized coupon book, but the coupons weren't for shopping. The coupons offered things like, '1 Free Hug', '1 Free Surprise Date', '1 Free Back Rub', '1 Free Breakfast In Bed', and many others.

Regina flipped through it. "Awww, these are darling." 

Emma smiled and produced a black velvet box while she was distracted. It was slightly bigger than the palm of her hand. She didn't say anything, just waited for it to catch Regina's attention. 

Regina nearly jumped when she noticed it. "Jewelry?!" 

"It's nothing too extravagant, I promise," Emma spoke calmly. 

Regina picked it up as carefully as if it were made from glass, not sure what to expect. She opened it to reveal a necklace that almost looked like a charm bracelet. The chain was silver, and there were three things clipped onto it, rather than looped onto it, so they would stay where they were. There was a fancy looking silver 'R' on the left, then a small amethyst cross in the middle, and a fancy looking silver 'E' on the right. 

"Emma...this is beautiful." 

"I used your birthstone for the cross, which is really supposed to be a plus, partly because mine is the most expensive." 

"I noticed," Regina replied with a smile. "I'll try it on later, but for now…" She closed the box and then pointed towards the ceiling, where the sound of small, thundering footsteps were moving closer to the stairs. "The monster awakes." 

Henry flung himself down the stairs in a way that nearly gave both Regina and Emma heart attacks.

"Mommmyyyyy! Emma! There's snow! Snow!" He torpedoed around them, bouncing around in his excitement. "Can we go play outside?!" 

Emma's eyes widened. She had never seen him get so excited about anything before. It was kind of scary. No wonder Regina had dubbed him the monster. 

Regina chuckled, used to this. "Henry, you asked the same thing yesterday and the day before. The answer is still there is too much snow to let us go outside. That's why you don't have school and why I don't have work." She ruffled his hair affectionately. "And it just keeps coming down…" she mused, looking out a window.

Henry pouted. "Why have snow if can't play in it?" he demanded grumpily.

"Hey, Henry," Emma stage whispered conspiratorially. 

Henry moved over to her curiously. 

"The longer the snow stays, the longer I stay," she pointed out to pacify him. 

"Yay! I love snow!" He threw his arms around her and gave her a tight squeeze. 

Emma lightly patted him on the back. "Can't breathe, kiddo." 

Henry immediately released her. "Sorry." 

"How about some breakfast, Henry?" Regina asked. 

"Cap'n Crunch!" Henry squawked and darted off to the kitchen. 

Emma blinked at Regina. "He did this yesterday and the day before, too?" 

"You slept through it." 

"How?" 

Regina shrugged. "Beats me. Could you get Henry his cereal? I want to take my gifts up to my room." 

"Sure." It was just cereal, how hard could it be? Emma smiled and got up to go to the kitchen. 

"He will insist on pouring the milk himself though, fair warning." 

Emma's eyes widened, imagining the potential mess that would make. "What?" she asked meekly. 

"Have fun!" Regina was already walking away, headed for the stairs. 

Emma shook her head and went into the kitchen. "So, little man, where do you keep the captain?" 

"What's a cap-tan? It's Cap'n!" 

"Alright, where's the Cap'n, then?" Emma asked, looking around. 

"Fridge," Henry answered as if it was the simplest thing in the world. 

Emma was confused until she noticed the box was sitting on top of the fridge. Probably so he couldn't grab it whenever he wanted. Smart. She noticed he already had a bowl and spoon, and the bowl had a straw attached to it. "That's a neat bowl," she commented as she grabbed the box of cereal. 

"Mmmhmm. It's green. It can turn into The Hulk!" 

Emma laughed. "It can?" 

"Yeah!" 

Emma poured the cereal into the bowl and stopped when it was nearly at the top. "I hear you like to pour your own milk, huh?" 

"You can help me," he stated.

"Oh?" 

"Yeah. I hold the top handle you hold the bottom handle." 

"I see." Emma grabbed the milk from the refrigerator. She carefully took the cap off. "So, you hold it above where I'm holding it, is that how it works?" Clever. Very clever. She bet he let Regina 'help him' pour the milk, too. 

Henry nodded and grabbed it where he said he would. Together they poured, but Emma had 99% of the control. When she decided to stop, Henry let go as if he knew, and Emma put the cap back on the milk before returning it to the fridge. 

"Emma?" he asked, looking at her. 

"Yeah?" She turned away from the fridge. 

"Can you stay forever?" 

Emma's heart clenched at the innocent question. "I...I dunno. I've got a job, too, my own place… I have to leave eventually, but I've always come back, haven't I?" 

"You were gone for a really long long time before." 

"I know, I was working. That won't happen again any time soon. I don't want to be gone that long. I missed you way too much, kid." Emma affectionately ruffled his hair, much like Regina had earlier. "You should eat your cereal before it gets all soggy and gross." 

Henry grinned. "Okay." He obeyed and started shoveling spoonfuls into his mouth. 

After a few moments, Emma felt a presence. She turned to see Regina leaning against a wall in the entry of the kitchen, watching them with fond eyes. The blonde cleared her throat nervously. "How, uh, how much of that did you just hear?" she asked quietly as she approached her. 

"Enough," Regina answered with a warm smile. "You handled that well." 

"It's not fair, though. Now that he said something, I want to stay forever. But I haven't even known you a year yet, it's too soon for that." 

"Awww. And you haven't even got my Valentine's gift to you yet." 

Emma wondered what that meant, but there was a mischievous glint in Regina's eyes that made her own widen in realization. "No…" she whispered. 

Regina took her hand and led her back to the living room, over to the key rack. "Notice anything different?"

There was a duplicate house key on a swan keychain. 

Emma was too afraid to touch it, like it might bite her. 

"You don't have to move in with us this early, but I'd like you to feel like you have a place here. If I ever need you to get Henry from school while I'm still at work, you'll be able to take him home without waiting on me. If you just want to be here, you're welcome. I will never be mad should you make a surprise visit. You've been forced in and out of places in your past, and I don't want to force you, but give you an option." 

Emma looked at her, a tear escaping. She could never stop being amazed at her ability to smother her in kindness while still leaving plenty of space for her to breathe. She was completely overwhelmed with the best emotions. There were no ultimatums with Regina, no invisible leash. She gave her control that circumstances in the past always prevented her from having. "I love you," she murmured for the first time. 

"What?" It was Regina's turn to be in awe and full of emotion. 

Emma knew she had just been given an out, but she refused to take it. "I love you," she repeated firmly. She wrapped her arms around her waist, looking into her eyes. 

"Oh, Emma," Regina breathed, her heart doing all kinds of acrobatics. "I love you, too."

After a few intense moments of simply searching each other's eyes, they came together in a tender kiss.


	13. Chapter 13

Regina decided to throw Emma a surprise birthday party, since she had been told she'd never had one before. At least, not any that she could remember. Regina wanted to help give her that experience, and Henry was excited to help her.

Emma's 24th birthday was April 12, 2007, a Thursday. It was easy enough for Regina to convince her she would be stuck working until 5:00 PM and that Kathryn would get Henry from school and be on babysitting duty. She said she would definitely be home by 8:00, so that would be a good time to come over. It was true that she wanted to spend time with Emma on her birthday, but not the alone part. She felt a little guilty for lying, but it was essential to keep the surprise a surprise.

In actuality, Regina had taken the day off of work to finalize setting things up. She had invited a lot of her own friends, because Emma didn't have many, or any, that she talked about. Her friends were all too happy to help her support her girlfriend, and for a lot of them it meant their kids would have someone to play with.

It was a potluck, most of Regina's friends didn't know a whole lot about Emma, but food was always a must at parties. Some had gift ideas and asked Regina if it was something Emma would like, and Regina okayed a few of them, even though she herself was already spoiling her with all kinds, much like she had on Henry's very first birthday.

Everybody had arrived by 7:00 PM, except Emma, of course, and helped decorate, chatted, and passed time in general. 5 minutes until 8:00, Regina told everyone to find a place to hide and be silent. By 7:59 nearly everyone could hear Emma's key turning in the lock.

"SURPRISE!" Everybody popped out of hiding when Emma pushed the door open.

Emma was startled at first, then shocked, eyes wide as she searched for Regina in the crowd.

Regina made herself known, coming closer. "I'm sorry for lying, but I wanted to give you a birthday party to make up for all the other birthday parties you never got to have."

Emma gawked at all the decorations, food, bags, boxes, and piles of presents. "All this...is for me?"

Henry could no longer contain his excitement and ran toward Emma, tackling her in a hug. "Happy birthday!" He nearly shoved a card into her face that he had clearly made. It was made from white construction paper with a big red misshapen heart drawn and colored in on the front, with sloppy block lettering that read, 'FOR EMMA'. The same sloppy lettering was the only thing to be seen on the inside, this time saying, 'LOVE HENRY'.

Emma wasn't sure whether to hug him back first or take the card, so she managed to do both at the same time. "Awww, Henry!" She beamed. "I love you, too, kid." She kissed the top of his head fondly. Regina smiled, glad Henry could make her so happy.

"So, this is the infamous Emma," a certain paralegal stated, approaching Emma. "I'm Sidney. Once upon a time, my friend Regina called asking about adoption out of the blue. Not even a year later she brought Henry home, if I remember correctly."

Emma smiled. "I am forever grateful to everyone who had any role in Regina getting him. I wanted him to have his best chance, and he certainly got it with her."

"Is someone trying to take credit for my adopting Henry again?" Regina chided teasingly as she made her way over, shoulder bumping her friend.

Sidney guffawed. "I'd never!"

Emma laughed. She was amazed not only at the sheer number of friends Regina managed to pack into the room, but by how different they all were. It was like a little New York in her living room. There were people of every size, shape, and color, and once again she was struck by how compassionate her girlfriend was, not only having, but being able to keep so many diverse friendships. Emma had been stuck living with some very racist people at certain times in her life, and she loved that she found someone that was nothing like them. Before she met Regina, she had been conditioned to believe everybody was a little bit racist.

"You're doing that dreamy eye thing again," Regina pointed out.

"You just...have so many friends. They're all unique, and somehow, you got them all to come here for me. I am just constantly amazed by you."

"That's our Regina." Sidney clapped his friend on the shoulder. "The epitome of equality. The world would be so peaceful with more people like her in it. Not that any of us really remember the world's negativity when we're around her."

Regina blushed. "Oh, stop. Take me off that pedestal and take the limelight elsewhere, this is for Emma."

"So humble," Sidney stated warmly. "So, what's the number?" he asked Emma. "She refused to tell us, said you had to if you wanted it known."

"Oh." Emma shrugged, but thought that was sweet of Regina. "24."

Sidney looked at Regina with a bewildered respect. "Some day, you must share your secrets."

Regina rolled her eyes.

"Unc Sidney!" Henry moved over to him, stretching his arms. "Up?"

Emma smirked. "Henry to the rescue."

Sidney lifted him up easily. "Heya, buddy! Been a while. You're so big now!"

Regina took Emma's hand and led her elsewhere, introducing her to friends she hadn't met yet.

Kathryn snuck up on them and playfully grabbed Regina's shoulders from behind. "Boo!"

Regina jumped, startled. "Julius Caesar, Kathryn! You scared the hell out of me!"

"I got tired of waiting for you to come to me, had to come to you."

Emma laughed. "'Julius Caesar'?"

"She doesn't say, 'Jesus Christ'," Kathryn explained. "Got in trouble for it once when we were kids, after that she trained herself to say Julius Caesar instead. Gets the job done."

"That's the best thing I've ever heard."

"Don't you have a husband to bug?" Regina teased Kathryn.

"He's too busy entertaining the kids, playing rocket ship. By the way, happy birthday, Emma. I love to pick on Regina, but I really just wanted to hug the birthday girl."

Emma smiled. "Aww. Go ahead."

Kathryn gave her a big hug. "Thank you for keeping my girl happy," she whispered in her ear. "I can only do so much as a best friend."

"Not a problem." Emma hugged her back. She loved this. She was included not only in Regina's family, but in her circle of friends, as well. If this was how birthday parties were supposed to be, she was sad she never had any before, but this was definitely making up for it.

When they parted, Regina resumed introducing Emma to her friends. "This is Yasmine."

"I don't think I've heard that name before, but it's beautiful," Emma commented.

"It's Algerian," Yasmine told her. "Both my parents are half-Algerian, so I'm half-Algerian, too."

"Neat! That's in Africa, right?"

"Yes, right next to Morocco. Many European influences, most recently the French."

"Yves Saint Laurent was born there while it was still French Algeria," Regina told her.

"The fashion designer? Huh. I thought he was just French." Emma shook her head. "Anyway, thank you for coming, Yasmine. I've never had any sort of event like this thrown for me, I'm glad Regina could get so many people to come."

"Well, happy birthday, or _joyeux anniversaire_ ," Yasmine replied with a smile.

The introductions of Emma to Regina's various friends continued for a while longer.

"I love your friends, Regina. They're so awesome. I'm really glad you did this, too. It was definitely worth the twenty-four year wait." She hugged her.

A chorus of 'awww's echoed around the room and Regina chuckled as she hugged her back. "You're welcome, sweetheart."

"Auntie Gina!"

Regina broke the hug and turned toward the voice. "Melissa? Oh my, you've gotten tall!"

"Well, I am ten now," she informed.

"No! You're lying."

"I'm totally telling the truth." Melissa hugged her. Then she looked at Emma. "So, if you're dating, does that make Emma my Auntie, too?"

Regina smiled at Emma. "I suppose if she wants to be."

"Do you have any siblings I don't know about?" Emma asked, a tad confused.

"Oh, I'm sorry, this is Sidney's daughter. I think I mentioned being an honorary aunt before, I just may not have named names," Regina explained.

"I can be an aunt." Emma smiled. "Just don't call me Auntie Em, I'm not a Wizard of Oz character."

Melissa laughed. "You're funny."

"Thanks. I think."

"Does your dad still have Henry?" Regina asked Melissa.

"No, I think he's playing rocket with...I forget his name, Kathryn's husband."

"It's David. Thank you."

Emma's stomach chose that moment to growl.

Regina laughed. "Go eat, Emma. There's no scheduled eating time."

"You could've told me that sooner!" Emma rolled her eyes with a smile and kissed her cheek before making a dash for the table where food and drinks were set out with paper plates and cups, and plastic utensils. She could tell some of the food was indigenous to a variety of certain nationalities. She loved it, because it showed that whoever brought it not only knew where they came from, but that they were proud of it. She did her best to try everything, partly because her stomach seemed to be a bottomless pit.

Meanwhile, Regina found David, Henry, and the mob of other little ones that all wanted a turn on David's rocket ship, which really meant he was just lifting them into the air above his head and jogging a short distance before returning them to their feet.

"Aren't you tired yet?" Regina asked. "Even personal trainers must have their limits."

"Are you kidding? This is just a warm up. I could bench press like ten of these kids." David set Henry back down on his feet.

"In that case, I may have to snag you for Henry's birthday. I think he might be planning on inviting his entire class. Imagine twenty-something more kids on top of everyone else here, assuming everyone else would be able to come."

"Sounds like a great workout. I'm totally game. Who needs a bouncy castle when you've got a human rocket launcher?"

"Daddy, me next!" David's son, Jacob, jumped up and down in front of him, trying to get his attention.

"Wait a second, Jacob, I'm talking."

Jacob looked at Regina with puppy dog eyes. "Are you almost done?"

Regina laughed. "Sure." She winked at David and swooped Henry up into her arms, making him laugh. "Having fun?"

"Yeah! Emma's birthday is funner than mine! When does she open presents?"

Regina chuckled. "After cake, Henry."

"When does she have cake?"

"When she's finished eating and decides she's ready for dessert."

"When's that?"

Regina chuckled and shook her head. "Be patient, Henry. I'm letting you stay up late and not go to school tomorrow, but I can always change my mind."

Henry silenced immediately, just snuggling up in her arms and getting comfortable.


	14. Chapter 14

Emma was especially emotional when Henry's birthday came around. May 15, 2007, the baby boy she had given up and then found again turned 6. They already celebrated his birthday on Saturday, the 12th, which happened to be the day before Mother's Day, and it was very similar to Emma's birthday, except a ton of kids and far more kid themed. There was not one, but two pinatas, and the two of them had spent at least a week prior making goody bags for all the kids to take home with them. It was amazing and fun, but for the actual date to come, that's when the realization sunk in and brought with it so many emotions.

It was the first birthday Emma was present in his life for, to start. He was almost done with kindergarten, for another. It had almost, but not quite, been a year since she had met him and Regina. Nearly six and a half years since Neal died.

That day, Regina decided that she and Henry should go to Emma's. It was overdue. Emma wasn't expecting it, making her even more emotional, but she was happy to have them there, even though her apartment was nowhere near as impressive as Regina's house. She swept Henry into her arms, hugging him tight and giving his cheek kisses.

"I'm so glad I can see you today," she whispered. "Happy birthday." She smiled at Regina thankfully with watery eyes. "Want a tour?"

"Yeah!" Henry cheered.

"Alright. Come on in, Regina."

Regina entered the apartment and closed the door behind her.

Emma showed them the living room and small kitchen downstairs, upstairs her bedroom and the spare bedroom, plus the bathroom. "It's not much, but it's livable."

Regina couldn't help but smile at the wall. There were pictures, framed, of her, Henry, the both of them, her and Emma, and all three of them. "I had no idea you framed these, much less put them on your wall."

"Well, yeah. That way I can still see you when I'm not with you. I loved the photo album, but these are way too precious to be hiding away in some book."

Henry hugged her, kissing her cheek.

Emma smiled. "I'm so glad you're here," she said in a choked whisper. "I don't think either of you know how much it means to me to see you today."

Regina joined the hug. "A lot, I'm sure," she murmured. "I figured it would be a very important day for you to see him." She kissed her cheek in time to catch a tear.

"It is," Emma confirmed.

"Are you sad?" Henry asked.

"No! No, Henry. I'm just so overwhelmed with happiness and love. I'm the opposite of sad."

"But you're crying?" Henry was puzzled.

"People don't just cry when they're sad," Regina gently explained. "They can be really happy, too. Remember when you laughed so hard your eyes watered? It's kind of like that."

"So...happy crying?"

"Yes, Henry. Very happy." Emma lovingly kissed his forehead.

Henry looked at Regina. "Mom?"

"Yes, dear?"

"Can I call Emma Mama Emma?"

Regina and Emma looked at each other for a moment.

"I think that would be appropriate," Regina finally answered. "If that's alright with you?" she asked Emma.

Emma nodded. "I love it. But she's still the boss, Henry."

"Okay, Mama Emma." Henry smiled at her.

Emma tightened the hug before gently returning him to his feet. She loved the way that sounded. It was so sweet that he wanted to call her that. She did feel she should be more than just Emma, but she wasn't sure what else would have been appropriate, since Regina was definitely his mother. She smiled at Regina. "Thank you for coming and bringing him." She hugged her. "Just when I think I can't love you any more than I already do… you make me love you more."

"Aww, Emma. I love you, too. You're so sweet to me."

"It's hard to be anything else. You're you."

Henry sing-songed, "Mom and Mama Emma, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

Regina laughed. "Uh oh. He's learned that one already. I blame school."

Emma laughed too, as Henry continued on, "First comes love, then comes maw...mawwidge? Then comes a baby in a baby care-idge!"

"I think we did something out of order, there." Emma chuckled. "And his mispronunciations are absolutely adorable."

"He's a charmer, that one." Regina smiled. "Are you up to see a movie? I promised Henry I'd take him to see Spider Man 3 today."

"Isn't that PG-13?"

"Yeah, but he's already seen the first two, and a lot of PG-13 movies are more appropriate than children's cartoons. He'll be fine."

"Man, I wish I had a foster parent this cool when I was 6." Emma looked at Henry. "You're super lucky to have your mom, you know that?"

Henry nodded with a grin. "She's the best!"

"Well, I'm game. I can't even remember the last time I saw a movie in an actual theater."

"Yes!" Henry cheered, punching the air in his excitement.

"He was hoping you'd come, can you tell?" Regina smiled.

"Yeah. What time is the movie?"

"I was thinking 6:00 would be the best time."

"That works for me." Emma smiled. "How far away is it?"

Regina looked at her watch. "By car we'll be late. If we start walking now, we should get there just before the trailers start. It took us this long to get here and we came straight after I picked him up from school."

"Ah, gotta love New York traffic. I'll just need to grab a couple things if we're going to leave now." Emma grabbed a jacket and made sure she had her keys and wallet on her.

Less than five minutes later, the three of them were walking down a fairly crowded sidewalk, on their way to the theater. Regina and Emma each held one of Henry's hands, flanking him protectively. Henry was bouncy and chatty, and it would be nonsense to most people, but Emma hung on every silly statement, grateful just to be able to spend this time with him. And with her. Regina. It was already nearly a year, but that wasn't nearly enough time. She wanted to spend the next year and many more years with her. Spend the rest of her May 15ths just like this, with their son. Of course, he would grow up eventually, but they could spend at least another decade like this before that.

Regina was right, they got there before trailers started, giving them time to get concessions. Well, mostly to get Henry concessions. Regina and Emma were fine sharing a tub of popcorn, but Henry, of course, needed a drink and candy, too. Which, Regina knew, he probably wasn't even going to touch because he'd be so enthralled with the movie. He even got sucked into the trailers. He was a little movie buff in the making.

Henry sat in the middle once inside the theater room, not wanting to choose between them. He was short enough that from the back it didn't look like anyone was sitting there at all, unless they looked towards the ground and saw his dangling feet.

Emma noticed throughout the movie that her companions were interested by very different parts. Regina was clearly invested in the romantic storyline, which made Emma wonder how much input she had in seeing this specific movie. Henry seemed fascinated by all the visual effects and the action scenes. Emma was mostly lost because she hadn't seen the first two, but she could follow the basic idea.

On the way out, Regina asked Henry, "Did you like the movie, honey?"

"Mmhmm!" Henry nodded solidly. "Bad Spiderman is awesome!"

Emma chuckled. She had little doubt Neal would have had the same response.

He looked to Emma. "Did you?" he asked, excitement shining in his eyes.

Emma responded with far more enthusiasm than she actually felt, "Heck yeah, it was awesome! And you can see the city from way up high just like Spiderman can."

Henry looked confused. "How?"

"Like this!" Emma picked him up and sat him down on her shoulders, each leg hanging on either side of her neck.

"Be careful," Regina instructed, but it was drowned out by Henry's happy laughter.

Emma held onto each of Henry's hands to help keep him steady and make sure he wouldn't fall as she continued walking, watching out for things like trees and parts of buildings that were at Henry's level so she could tell him to duck when needed.

Regina smiled, glad Henry had someone young and energetic like Emma to play around and have fun with like that. She in no way considered herself old, at least not yet, but she was getting there. She knew it would put too much of a strain on her body to put his weight on her shoulders like that. She could manage a few minutes of a piggyback ride, but not the shoulders.

Henry enjoyed the ride until they were all the way back at Emma's apartment, where she finally had to put him back down on his own feet.

"Well, I guess it's time to end the night." Emma kissed his forehead. "Thanks for letting me spend your birthday with you."

Henry pouted. "I don't want to leave."

"Well, you've got school in the morning, don't you?" Emma looked to Regina for help, not sure what else to say or do.

"He does," Regina confirmed. "But...do you really want to spend the night with Em - Mama Emma, Henry?"

Henry spun to face her. "Yesss! Please, please, please!"

"Even without me here?"

Henry hesitated a moment before nodding, afraid he might get in trouble.

"Alright." Regina smiled. "That can be arranged."

Emma's eyes widened in confusion. "Wha -?"

Regina stepped closer to her and lowered her voice, "You know where the school is and what time he needs to be there. I've got his school stuff in my car still because we came straight here after I picked him up. I can grab anything else he needs at home and drop it off."

"But… Alone?" Emma didn't know how Regina could trust her that much when she couldn't even trust herself.

"You're amazing with him, and if you need me for anything, I'm just a phone call away. It's just one night, Emma."

"Why can't you stay, too?" It was Emma's turn to pout.

"Because I'll never want to go to work in the morning if I do. I can go in even earlier if Henry's here and I don't need to worry about getting him to school."

Emma kissed her gently. "I trust you, and I guess you trust me, so I'll probably be fine."

"Have a little faith in yourself, Emma. You give yourself far too little credit. If I thought for even a second he wouldn't be safe under your supervision, I wouldn't let him stay. You know more about keeping kids safe than you think. Just because you missed the first five years, doesn't mean those maternal instincts you had went away."

"Okay." Emma nodded, feeling more confident. "You're right, I can do this."

Regina hugged her and then turned to Henry. "Why don't you go get your backpack from the car? I'll run home and get you some pajamas, clothes for tomorrow, and your toothbrush."

Henry had started to go to the car as soon as Regina mentioned it, but was still listening. He pulled his backpack out of the backseat and shouted to her, "Don't forget Mr. Monkey!"

"Ah, of course." Regina looked at Emma. "I may have to strangle Kathryn for getting him that thing. He was never codependent on stuffed animals to sleep before."

Emma laughed. "Maybe he just likes it because she gave it to him. Sometimes I hold onto that keychain you gave me when I want to be close to you. Sometimes it's when I'm getting ready to sleep at night," she admitted.

"Awww! Next time you can actually use the key and have the real thing. Just not tonight. Henry wants to spend what's left of his birthday with you, and he should be able to have that."

As if on cue, Henry returned with his backpack. "So, can we go inside now?"

"Oh, yes! Of course." Emma got the door unlocked and let Henry inside first.

"I'll go grab his things and I'll be back. I can stay long enough to say goodnight, but no longer."

Emma nodded. "I understand. Kinda sucks, but… You gotta do what you gotta do."

Regina pecked her lips before heading back to her beloved Mercedes.

Emma went inside her apartment, closing and locking the door behind her. "So, are you hungry? You must not have had much of a dinner if you came straight here after school. Want to have something to eat while we wait for your mom to bring the rest of the stuff you need?"

"Mmm...sure!" Henry answered with a grin.

"How about...grilled cheese? Do you like grilled cheese?"

"Grilled cheese is my favorite!"

Emma smiled. That was a no brainer, considering grilled cheese was her top pregnancy craving. "Alright, coming right up! Just sit tight." She made her way to the kitchen area to make a couple grilled cheese sandwiches. She was hungry, too. When they were done, she put them on paper plates. It was just easier and less messy that way.

She took the plates out to the living room, joining Henry on the couch. "I don't really have a table or anything, so be careful, okay?" She handed a plate to him.

Henry nodded and put the plate on his lap, picking up the sandwich and trying to eat over the plate so it caught any crumbs.

"Want to watch TV?" Emma asked.

"Yeah! Spongebob?"

Emma chuckled. "We'll see if there's any Spongebob on right now." She turned the TV on with the remote and flipped through a few channels, eventually recognizing the yellow sponge and his pink starfish companion. "You're in luck, kid."

"Yay!" Henry cheered.

It didn't take long for Emma to understand what Regina meant about kids' cartoons being dirtier than PG-13 movies. ' _Don't forget your condiments, Plankton!'_ Spongebob squirted the little green cyclops dude with ketchup and mustard. Emma snorted. It could be that she had a dirty mind, but come on, Mr. Krabs and Sandy Cheeks living in Bikini Bottom? That had to be on purpose.

The two were each about halfway through their sandwiches when Regina returned, knocking at the door.

"Keep eating, I'll get it." Emma got up to answer the door.

"How 'bout that, you made it this long without calling me!" Regina smiled.

"Got sucked into Spongebob after making us some grilled cheese sandwiches. You're right, cartoons are dirty!"

Regina laughed. "Well, thank you for feeding him. I forgot he had his lunch box with him here, so I made his lunch for tomorrow and put everything in ziplock bags. Maybe you can put them in the box after he's gone to bed? I would have felt horrible if he didn't get anything for lunch tomorrow."

"Oh, of course!" Emma smiled. "Well, he knows you're here, so come on in. I know you can't stay long, but you did say you'd say goodnight."

Regina nodded and entered the apartment, letting Emma close the door behind her. "How's it going, Hen?" she asked as she approached the couch.

"Good!" He smiled a cheesy grin at her. Literally. The gooey cheese was sticking to his teeth.

Regina smiled. "I'm glad. You can finish eating, but after that I want you to change into your pajamas and brush your teeth so I can say goodnight before I go. You don't have to go to bed just yet, I'll let Emma decide on when tonight, since she's the one that gets to deal with you in the morning."

Emma gasped in mock offense. "Evil!" She shook her head. "I'll give you 'til ten, since it's 8:30 now," she told Henry.

"Okay!" He went back to eating and watching TV.

"You've got quite a bit of stuff there, let me help you." Emma made her way over to Regina, taking what was obviously Mr. Monkey, and Henry's pajamas. She put them on the couch next to him so they were ready when he was. She took the food in the ziplock bags and put them in the fridge. "Alright, I think the rest can go upstairs. Just clothes for tomorrow and toothbrush now, right?"

"Yes, I believe so. Thank you."

"Let's go upstairs and get them where they need to be." Emma smiled, glad for whatever time with Regina she could get.

Regina nodded and went to the stairs with her, up to the next floor. The clothes went on top of a dresser in the guest room, neatly folded, and the toothbrush on the bathroom counter.

After everything was where it needed to be, Emma hugged Regina. "We'll know when Henry's about ready to say goodnight, he'll have to come up here to brush his teeth."

Regina chuckled. "You're not wasting a second you can get with me, are you?"

"Not a single one." Emma gently nuzzled her cheek along her neck and pressed a kiss to her jaw. "Especially because you're at my place for once, and it never really felt like a home until you and Henry walked in."

"I can not handle how sweet you are." Regina kissed the top of her head.

"A year ago today I was sad, just like the four years before that. This is the first May 15th since his birth that I've been able to be happy. To feel loved. Not be afraid I made the wrong decision. And the first since his birth that I've gotten to spend time with him. I wouldn't be feeling any of that without you, so yes, along with a rollercoaster of other emotions, I am very sweet today."

Regina held her close, the weight of Emma's words shooting straight to her heart. "I'm glad I made those things happen for you," she murmured.

They just lingered in their embrace until they heard little feet coming up the stairs. They reluctantly released each other, but stayed close. It was amazing how much love there could be between two people not even a year after they first met.

After Henry had brushed his teeth and got in his pajamas, Regina gave him goodnight hugs and kisses, and told him to be good for Emma. Then she gave Emma a kiss goodbye and had to be on her way before her resolve could break and make her stay the night with him.


	15. Chapter 15

At the beginning of June, the 6th, to be exact, Henry's kindergarten class was graduating. Class of 2007. The school was doing a setup similar to a high school graduation and everything. Except, obviously, there were far less kindergarteners graduating than high school seniors just by sheer numbers. Also like high school, the kindergarteners' school year ended before everyone else's, much like seniors in high school.

Regina and Emma could not get enough of Henry in his little black robe and graduation cap. They cheered louder than any other parent there when Henry's name was called to accept his certificate of completion. Emma was beyond happy to be present for yet another milestone in Henry's life.

Many, many pictures were taken, though neither woman could tell for sure how well they turned out, as they were teary eyed the majority of the time. They felt pride and a little bit of sadness. He had accomplished his first year of schooling, but that meant in a couple short months he would be moving on to the next grade and gaining even more independence, mixing with not only others his age, but with the big kids, too. He was going to make even more friends, have a bigger part of his life where Regina and Emma wouldn't be needed as much.

* * *

June of 2008 came before anyone knew it. By this point Regina was 37, Emma was 25, and Henry was 7. Two whole years since Regina and Emma met, a year and a half since they made their relationship official. July 4, 2008 was the second anniversary of their first date.

Emma had a surprise for Regina. "So, I think I'm going to sell my apartment."

Regina froze. "Why?" Her mind went to dark places, jumping to conclusions. Was this it? Had Emma finally gotten tired of her and Henry? Was their whirlwind romance coming to a halt?

Emma could see the hurt in Regina's eyes before she even opened her mouth to answer. Crap. Perhaps that wasn't the best way to start. "It's nothing bad! I promise. Cross my heart." She took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "So, why do people sell their homes in the most basic sense?"

"Because...they're moving out." Regina still wasn't sure where this was going, but she trusted Emma.

"Exactly. So, if I'm moving out, where am I moving to? Think about it." She looked into Regina's eyes.

Regina held her gaze, and slowly the meaning began to sink in. She let out a gasp when it clicked, eyes widening. "Here? You want to move here? With me? With us?"

Emma smiled. "I'm here most of the time now, anyway. If… If that's okay with you, of course."

"Okay?" Regina smiled a huge, watery smile. "Emma, I've been ready to have you live with us since I gave you that key. That's why I gave you the key. I wanted you to use it...a lot. I just didn't want to corner you, but of course it's okay! It's more than okay!"

Emma felt warm and fuzzy at how excited Regina was. She hugged her close. "I'm sorry I scared you at first, I didn't mean to. I'm just not the greatest at phrasing things sometimes."

"It's okay! You're already forgiven." Regina pressed loving kisses to her cheek. "When can you move in?"

"As soon as I'm done packing the rest of what little I own. I already packed about half of it, not wanting to pack it all just to unpack it again. In case you weren't ready yet or didn't think it was a good idea. But that won't take long. I could probably move in tomorrow. Sunday at the latest."

Regina let out a happy squeal. "Should we tell Henry, or should we let it be a surprise?"

"Let's tell him. It might make his entire summer."

Regina nodded. "Alright." She was clearly on cloud 9, grinning so hard her face hurt. She led Emma out to the backyard where Henry was playing, scaling the trees like he was Tarzan. "Henry!" she called. "Come back down to Earth, Mama Emma has something to tell you!"

Henry scampered down the tree.

"Why are you barefoot, young man?" Regina asked when she saw he wasn't even wearing socks.

"I climb better," Henry answered with a shrug. He looked at Emma. "So…?"

"So…" Emma looked at Regina and back to Henry. "I'm moving in!"

Henry's eyes widened. "Like, you're gonna live here forever?!"

"Yeah!" Emma grinned.

"Yaaaaaaaaay!" Henry tackled her in a hug. "I love you, Mama Emma!"

"Aww, I love you, too, Henry." She kissed the top of her head. "But you might want to come inside and get your feet washed before you get in trouble."

"Okay!" Henry didn't care about not being able to play barefoot outside when one of his favortist people was going to live with him.

Regina blinked. "That… That was impressive! Too bad telling him you're moving in can only be used once. He listened without whining."

Emma laughed. "He's cute when he whines, though."

Regina looked at her. "Oh, there was such innocence in that statement that's about to be shattered because you're moving in."

"Well, I know he's not a hellion, so he can't be that bad. Plus, half of him is me."

"And that makes him any less a hellion?" Regina teased.

"My god, woman!" Emma shook her head. "Is this how it's gonna be? I move in and you tease me? I'm wounded!" She slapped a hand against her own heart dramatically.

Regina rolled her eyes. "You love me."

"I do, indeed." Emma smiled and wrapped her arms around her. "And I love our banter."

Regina pressed a kiss to her lips. "Thank you for this. It's nice to have some good news after the way this quarter's gone at the bank."

"This recession bites, I know. But we'll make it through, we've got each other and the kid."

Regina smiled. "I know." She rested her head on her shoulder. "I just wish people didn't expect me to work miracles as a CFO when the entire world is being affected by this."

"I don't expect you to do anything. Except breathe. I require that of you for forever."

Regina laughed. "Well, we should go check on Henry. See if he isn't making a bigger mess washing his feet." She took her hand and led her back inside.

They found him in the bathroom, in the tub, splashing around with his jeans rolled up to his knees. The water was starting to turn a bit brown.

Regina cleared her throat. "I hope you used soap and aren't just splashing around getting your feet wet."

Henry shook his head. "Tried. It stings."

Regina frowned. "Sit down on the edge, let me see."

Henry sat down on the edge of the tub and held his foot up for Regina to see.

"Yeah...looks like you've got a cut there, Henry. This is why we don't climb trees barefoot."

"Got any Neosporin?" Emma asked. "It would be easier on him than hydrogen peroxide."

"Umm...yeah, I think so. Try one of the drawers."

Emma found a tube of Neosporin in the second drawer she tried. She washed her hands, as one was supposed to do before use, before putting a small dab on her finger and gently rubbing it along the cut on Henry's foot. "Alright, almost done. But you've got to let this heal, so no more tree climbing for a while, okay?"

Henry nodded sullenly. "Okay, Mama Emma."

Emma looked at Regina. "Can you get a clean towel and a bandaid, please?"

"Sure." Regina smiled, loving how natural taking care of something like this was coming to Emma. She temporarily left the bathroom to find and bring the requested items.

Emma, in the meantime, washed her hands again and put the tube of Neosporin back where she'd found it. "You may not be able to climb trees, but at least you'll be able to hang out with me pretty much all the time now." She smiled at him. "Isn't that even better?"

Henry couldn't help but smile back. "Yeah…" he agreed.

"We can do awesome things, too. Build forts, make s'mores - Your summer doesn't have to be boring just because you can't climb trees for a while."

"What's a suh-more?" Henry asked.

"Oh, you poor child. It's chocolate-y, marshmallow-y, melt-y goodness that I can not believe your mom hasn't introduced you to yet."

"I haven't introduced him to what, now?" Regina asked, having returned with the towel and bandaid.

"Oh, hey. Thanks." Emma took the towel and began carefully drying off Henry's foot with it. "Is there any particular reason Henry doesn't know what s'mores are yet?" When she was satisfied his foot was dry, she took the bandaid and figured out the best way to cover the cut before putting it on.

"Because I don't know what those are?" Regina wondered what childhood rite of passage she'd missed out on and was now causing Henry to miss out on, too.

"Other foot," Emma instructed Henry. She dried his second foot so they could be done and he could leave. Once it was just the two of them, she looked at Regina in mock horror. "You don't know what s'mores are?"

Regina rose her eyebrow and shook her head.

"I'll take a guess you haven't gone camping then, have you."

"I have. Once. Never again. I'm not sure what's worse - going to the bathroom outside or not being able to take a shower."

"Tsk." Emma shook her head. "Camping and no s'mores? That's messed up." She unplugged the drain of the tub so the dirty water could swirl down the drain, then found herself washing her hands for the third time. "S'mores," she explained, "are two graham cracker squares with a piece of chocolate and a giant marshmallow in the form of a sandwich, and you heat it up so the chocolate and marshmallow melt and it is delicious. It's a camping staple. But a microwave works just as well. After I'm officially moved in, first order of business will be introducing you both to s'mores."

Regina laughed at her matter-of-fact determination. "Yes, ma'am." She gave her a mock salute.

Once Emma dried her hands off, she wrapped her arms around Regina's waist. "You will love them." She kissed the tip of her nose.

Regina wrinkled her nose and laughed. "I believe you." She kissed her cheek. "Let's go make sure Henry doesn't hurt himself more."

"Alright." Emma smiled. She felt like an even more official part of the family now that she would be moving in.

* * *

Emma had kept her word. She had finished moving the last of her stuff over and found places for everything that Sunday. That evening, she made s'mores for everyone. She loved the confused looks on their faces as they tried to determine how to go about eating it, and the gooey mess it made of their faces and fingers. Henry, predictably, was the messiest, but Regina's attempts to not make a mess hilariously only caused her to make bigger messes. Henry's melted combination of chocolate and marshmallow got all over his face, but Regina somehow managed to get big globs of it on her nose and barely anywhere else. It was nice, for a change, for Emma to be able to introduce them to something that they had missed out on, instead of the other way around as it too frequently was.


	16. Chapter 16

Second grade was particularly rough on Henry. His teacher was giving him thick packets of spelling and math exercises every week that they didn't bother to explain, so he was continuously graded poorly. When the first quarter of the school year ended, he was in tears when he handed over his report card.

Regina and Emma were stunned, looking at each other and back to him. Regina took the card but didn't look at it, more concerned with Henry's emotional state.

"I'm sure it's not that bad, Henry," Emma told him optimistically. She had never seen or heard about him being this upset when report cards came home before.

"But it is!" Henry wailed, beating himself up and feeling stupid.

"Henry." Regina put a hand on his shoulder and spoke kindly, "No matter what this report says, you will not be in trouble."

Henry sniffled. "Re-Really?"

"I promise," Regina confirmed.

Henry held his pinky up. "Pinky swear?"

Regina let her pinky wrap around his.

Emma let out a low whistle. "Pinky swear, must be pretty serious for him to request that."

Regina nodded. "I'm going to look now," she told Henry. "Okay?"

Henry nodded reluctantly.

Regina looked at the report card and her eyebrows drew together. "1s and 0s? Honey, why didn't you ask for help?"

"I did! But the teacher never explains anything and nobody ever understands! And he won't let us ask our parents to help, he says it's cheating." He flinched when he saw Regina's expression. "You said you wouldn't be mad…"

Regina shook her head. "Oh, I am livid, but not at you, sweetheart. What kind of teacher doesn't let their student ask their parents for help?"

"Regina…" Emma stroked a calming hand along her forearm.

"No! I am going to march into that school and if that teacher won't talk to me or give me reasonable answers, I am going to the Principal and having him fired!"

"Uh oh. Woman on a mission." Emma knew there was no stopping her. She was in boss mode, which got extremely worse when combined with pissed off mother mode. "Well, while you do that, I'll take Henry home…"

"Good." Regina stomped toward the door of the school and Emma pitied anyone who dare get in her way. This version of Regina was terrifying, in a kinda sexy sort of way. The tigress was off her leash and stalking her prey.

"Mama Emma?" Henry asked, wiping at his face. "Can Mom really do that?"

"I don't dare doubt her ability to do anything when her mind is set on it." She took his hand. "If she comes home happy, I don't think you'll be seeing that teacher ever again." They started walking away from the school, towards home.

A few hours later, Regina was practically skipping through the front door. Emma looked at Henry. "See?"


	17. Chapter 17

June 26, 2006 was an important day, and June 26, 2009 was going to be an important day, as well. At least, Emma hoped so. She had arranged for Kathryn to watch Henry, and surprised Regina at work, showing up to pick her up. It wasn't an entirely uncommon thing for her to do, so Emma was sure Regina wouldn't be too suspicious.

"When was the last time we've actually been on a date?" Emma asked.

"Ummm…" Regina thought. "Well, February? Since you were gone all of November, December, and January chasing people down and wanted to make it up to me?"

"A date without Henry," Emma specified.

Regina laughed. "Oh. Right. I suppose that doesn't count, Henry was there. Hm… I guess I can't remember the last time, then."

"I'd say that means we're overdue, don't you think?"

Regina seemed to notice for the first time that Henry wasn't in the car with them. "Now?" she asked.

"Yes, right now. Kathryn's watching Henry, so we've got all the time in the world. Within reason."

Regina smiled. "So, where are we going?"

"Mmm… Central Park. Most of our fun dates involved us walking around, just talking."

"Yes, please. As comfortable as my office chair is, it becomes uncomfortable when I have to sit in it for hours and hours and hours. I could definitely use the walk," she stated gratefully. "You know I love you, right?"

Emma smiled. "Of course." She just hoped she was right about how much.

It wasn't long before Emma was finding a place to park. They walked hand in hand, and Emma tried not to make it too obvious that she had a specific part of the park in mind. However, it didn't take long for Regina to realize they were headed toward the Conservatory Garden.

"We going Italian, English, or French?" she asked.

"Is any trip to Central Park complete without visiting the geyser fountain?"

"Italian it is."

They continued their stroll to the Italian section of the garden, into its wisteria pergola, and along the path that led to the fountain. Once they got to a point where they were close to it but remained well out of splashing zone, they took a seat on the grass, both needing a break after all that walking. They just relaxed for a while.

When Emma felt the time was right, she casually announced, "I have a confession to make."

Regina looked at her quizzically. "I'm listening…"

"When I was gone, I wasn't just chasing people down."

"Okay…"

"I was also having something made. I had to wait a month just for it to be ready."

Regina could feel her heart begin to beat faster. "Emma…"

"And I want to show it to you. Stand up," Emma murmured.

Regina obeyed, feeling her legs shake slightly in anticipation.

Emma looked up at her. "Regina Mills, I met you three years ago on this date. I had a feeling the date would be important someday, but I had no idea just how much my life would change, for the better, in these three years that have followed. I love you so much it almost hurts, sometimes. I remember that first day, I asked you how such a gorgeous woman like you wasn't married." She shifted into a kneeling position and took one of Regina's hands. "If you'll allow me, if New York does what Massachusetts, Iowa, New Hampshire, and anyone I may be forgetting have already done, I would like to be the one to change that. And I don't care how long it takes, or how long we have to wait, because I know I'll be with you for the rest of my life, regardless of when it's put on paper and legalized." Emma pulled a ring out of her pocket. It had a silver band, the center stone was an amethyst in a heart shape, flanked by two slightly smaller regularly cut diamonds. "So, Regina Mills, will you marry me when it is legal for us to do so?"

Regina gasped, tears flowing from her eyes. She had started to expect she was going to propose, but the way she did it, what she said, it was just so beautiful. "Of course," she choked out. "Yes! Of course I'll marry you. I'd love for it to be when the whole country legalizes it, but if New York legalizes it before then, well, I don't want to die waiting."

Emma gently slid the ring onto the ring finger of Regina's left hand then stood up, hugging her close and giving her a kiss.

Regina held onto her tightly, responding to the kiss passionately, so elated beyond any possible explanation.

Emma smiled when the kiss broke, gently stroking the tears away from Regina's face. "I have one for you to give to me, if you're alright with that. If you've got your heart set on finding one for me yourself, that's okay, too."

"Let's see the one you got, first."

Emma pulled out another ring that was a clone to the first one, except the heart was a diamond and the gems flanking it were amethysts. "I thought it would be cute if we matched."

"Yes. Yes, it's perfect! They're gorgeous." Regina took the ring from her so she could put it on her ring finger as Emma had just done with her.

"I'm so glad you said yes," Emma whispered with watery eyes. "To getting married," she clarified.

"Aww, Emma. I'm touched you want to get married at all, considering what happened last time you were engaged."

"Same could be said for you."

Regina shook her head. "I was never engaged. Until now."

They hugged each other tight, and laughed, and continued to cry happy tears.

"You know what's silly?" Regina asked as they were walking back, still floating on cloud 9 but not quite as hysterical.

"Hm?"

"We get married, and you'll legally become Henry's step-mother - and you're the one that gave birth to him!"

Emma laughed. "That is rather silly. But it fits. I will always consider you his mother, always. You took care of him in the most important, most formative years of his life, when I couldn't. I came into his life five years late. That's why you're Mom, and I'm Mama Emma."

Regina wrapped an arm around her. "You did come into his life, though. Something neither of us expected to happen. Your first action as his mother wasn't when you met him at five. It was the day he was born, when you sacrificed your own happiness to ensure his. That, above everything else, is what makes you a mother. Some parents that raise their kids their entire lives never make those kinds of sacrifices."

"Stop reminding me how much I want to marry you. If you keep being your… perfect self, I'm dragging you to Massachusetts ASAP and marrying you today."

Regina laughed. "I'd like to be engaged at least 24 hours, first."

Emma kissed her cheek. "You're funny."

* * *

Kathryn squealed when Regina and Emma came back home. "I knew it!" She pointed an accusatory finger at Emma. "And you didn't tell me, you brat!"

"Technically, you told me to tell you when the wedding is, and we don't exactly have a date, yet," Regina told her friend.

"Don't you get all sassy with me! Give me details! Where did you go, how did she do it, let me see those gorgeous rings!"

"Kat, you sound like Minnie Mouse on helium. Stop, take a breath, and we'll give you your details. Just calm down, take a chill pill," Regina spoke in an easygoing tone.

When Kathryn calmed down, they began retelling the events of the day that led up to the proposal, showing her their rings up close.

"Awwww, you guys!" Kathryn gave each of them a hug. "You're so adorable together. I hope it becomes legal for you to be married soon. You're the closest thing to living proof soulmates exist that I've ever seen." She grinned when she got an idea. "Can I throw you an engagement party? Please, please, please? I'll make sure you approve of every single guest, I promise!"

Regina and Emma looked at each other for a moment and then simultaneously shrugged.

"If you must," Regina answered with a smile.

"Yay!" Kathryn clapped. "I am so excited!"

Emma laughed. "Just don't go too crazy."

"Me? Crazy? I would never!" Kathryn shook her head. "Well, I'm gonna bounce. Just got to say goodbye to Henry first. That boy is growin' like a weed, I tell ya! Have you noticed?"

"How could we not?" Regina asked. "He's growing out of clothes faster than we can buy them sometimes."

"Henry, your Mommies are home!" Kathryn called.

"Julius Caesar," Regina grumbled, letting her forehead fall onto Emma's shoulder.

Emma laughed, still finding her alternative to 'Jesus Christ' adorable. She gently stroked the top of her head, running her fingers through her hair.

Henry came downstairs and bid Kathryn adieu then greeted his mom and mama Emma. He noticed the rings and grinned. "You're gonna get married!"

They laughed and hugged him. "Yes."

"Cool!"


	18. Chapter 18

The opportunity to get married came sooner than expected, but that made Regina and Emma all the more ecstatic. They were mostly prepared. New York legalized it two days before the fifth anniversary of their first meeting, and two year anniversary of their engagement on June 24, 2011. Exactly one month later, at midnight, the first same sex couple married in New York. Regina and Emma were excited for it to be their turn.

It soon was. Friday, August 5, 2011, when Regina was 40, Emma 28, and Henry 10, they were wed beneath a temporarily constructed gazebo in their backyard. They were both wearing dresses, and both dresses were white. Robert walked Regina down the aisle, Kathryn was the Matron of Honor, her husband David was the Best Man, Henry was the ringbearer, and Emma's new friend, Ruby, who was in her early 20s, caught the bouquet.

That night, they were off to Chicago, back to where it all began, for their honeymoon. This time, they stayed in the same hotel room, which was a honeymoon suite. Henry didn't mind being left at home, he had friends he could sleepover and play videogames with, since it was still summer vacation. He was a big kid, he didn't need helicopter mommies anymore.

Two weeks was the longest Regina and Emma could bear to be away from him, though. It was a two weeks well spent, though. They even went back to the Pier and reenacted their first date, laughing and sometimes crying as they strolled along memory lane together.

It was nice to have the time together with no interruptions. They did a lot of talking, about their past, present, and future.

"I can't believe Henry's already ten," Regina murmured.

"I know." Emma kissed her cheek.

They were snuggled up in the hotel bed, a little homesick, but the next day would be their last full day away from home.

"Fifth grade. Next year he'll be in middle school," Emma mused.

"Puberty."

"Dating."

"Then high school." Regina groaned. "Make it stop! He's growing up far too fast. One day I'll blink and he'll be living on his own."

Emma kissed her shoulder. "I've been thinking."

"Uh oh."

"Hey!" Emma scoffed and playfully nudged her. "Anyway. I've been thinking...maybe we can have another kid? One that we can both raise from birth, together. Equally be parents to. That will make the house less empty when Henry's grown up and moved out."

Regina looked at her with shining eyes. "You'd want that?"

"I would. I missed so much with Henry, and now we're married and… I want to do it right. To be involved from day one and not miss anything. Henry's turning out to be a wonderful kid, but he's kind of the glue that makes us a family and I want us to be our own glue. I don't want sharing Henry to be what makes us family. Does that make sense? Like, I want us to be…" Emma sighed, frustrated her words weren't properly communicating what she was trying to say. She took in a breath and tried again, "When Neal proposed, I am 99% sure being pregnant with Henry was the biggest motivator. Sure, there was love, but without the pregnancy we might have waited. It was like, oh, we're having a baby, better get married so we're a family when the baby's born. But… that's not what makes a family. Having kids isn't what creates a family. It's what makes a family better and helps it grow." Finally, that was better. "But the family should already be in place before there are kids involved."

Regina nodded. "Well, we can't change the fact that we weren't a family before Henry was born."

Emma laughed.

"But I know what you mean. With Neal, your pregnancy with Henry was potentially a crutch to prop up and validate your relationship. Parents should be their children's crutch and safety net, not the other way around. We are solid enough to stand on our own feet and truly focus on a child's needs without worrying about our own status." She paused. "And I think I know why having another child would be important to you. You'd never have to give them away."

Emma nodded. A tear snuck out her eye that she quickly wiped away. "So… the real question is, would you want to deal with a teenager when you start pushing 60?"

Regina laughed. "I'll always be dealing with a teenager now that I've married you," she teased lovingly.

Emma rolled her eyes.

"On a more serious note… Of course I'd love more children. I'd love even more not to be a single mom again during those first five years, to be able to share that experience with you. But I think it's important to talk to Henry so he doesn't feel like we're replacing him, before anything else. We obviously don't have the parts to make a baby naturally, so every step along the way of a pregnancy would have to be 110% intentional. And if we do this, I have a big request to ask of you."

"Anything."

"Don't agree to anything before you know what I'm going to say. That's how people get hurt."

"Well, I'm assuming your request isn't that I kill a man, so I'm pretty sure I can ethically and morally do it."

Regina shook her head. "If we do this… no more bail bondsperson stuff. It's too dangerous and unpredictable. I am grateful nothing has happened to you yet and that you've made decent money from it since you started, but if you're the one carrying there are just too many ways that career can make you lose the baby, and if I'm the one carrying… the worry and stress wouldn't be good. I'd be afraid of the same thing happening to me that happened to you. And besides the safety, the schedule is bonkers. You needing to leave for months at a time...well, you'd miss out on stuff, anyway."

"Awww, Regina. If you told me it bothered you so much before, I would have stopped a long time ago."

"I didn't want to be that person. I didn't want to control you or take away your independence. Or make you feel like some… '50s housewife or something."

"You do none of those things, love." Emma hugged her close. "I'll tell you what," she murmured. "I'll stop no matter what we do, right now. I'll just let my license expire and never renew it."

"You'd do that for me?"

"I'll do it for me." Emma kissed the top of her head. "I don't like being away from you for long stretches of time, either."


	19. Chapter 19

June 26, 2012 was the mark of Emma's 12th week of pregnancy. Henry was excited to be a big brother, the thought he was being replaced had never crossed his mind. His response when asked how he would feel about them having a baby was, 'That would be the coolest present ever!'. That was the easiest part of the process. Everything else was harder. Figuring out how to get pregnant, which one would be the carrier, finding the best doctors, it was far more stressful to plan than their wedding had been.

Ultimately, it was decided Emma should be the one to carry. Regina told her if she didn't want to miss any time with the baby, she shouldn't miss out on the pregnancy. They used one of Regina's eggs and a sperm donor whose features were close enough to Emma's, so that the child would hopefully look like it biologically belonged to both women.

Regina was treating Emma like a queen, doting on her every possible and sometimes outrageously ridiculous need. She didn't blink at the moodswings, and didn't treat her like she was fragile just because she was pregnant.

Emma loved her for that. But what she loved more was how cute Henry was being. Almost every day he felt her belly and asked if the baby was kicking yet.

Emma laughed. "Kid," she had to tell him every time, "it's not big enough to kick yet. I'll let you know as soon as I feel it, I promise."

But every day, Henry expected a kick. Too many movies mentioning pregnancy kicks was undoubtedly the reason. Or maybe health class. Henry was 11 now, and his elementary started teaching mandatory health classes for 4th and 5th graders. When the school year started again, he would be a 6th grader, moving on to middle school.

That night, about two hours after going to bed - only 8 o'clock because pregnancy made Emma tired, putting her in bed at 6 that day - she woke and almost rolled on top of Regina, who wasn't asleep but liked to lay with her.

"Well, hello," the 41 year old chuckled.

Emma looked at her with comically wide eyes. "I need cookie dough." Apparently being pregnant at 29 gave her different cravings than when she was pregnant at 17.

Regina didn't even question it, she just knew she had a very short timeframe to get it before Emma got upset. "I'll get it. I'll be right back." She started getting out of bed.

Emma pouted. "Don't leave."

"I… have to. You need cookie dough, right?"

"Yeeeeessss," Emma whined.

"Henry can come snuggle with you, and I'll get you your cookie dough, okay?"

Emma pouted, but seemed to accept the proposition.

Regina left the bedroom. "Henry!" she called. "Mama Emma needs snuggles!"

Five seconds later, a blur zoomed past her and into the bedroom, snuggling up to his Mama.

Regina pulled on a jacket and set out, briskly walking to the nearest convenience store. Amazingly, she found a huge tub of the coveted cookie dough. There were a few. She grabbed two, just to be safe. After paying, she walked back home just as briskly as she'd left. She put one tub in the fridge, and took the other tub to the bedroom, along with a spoon.

She saw Henry and Emma still snuggling and smiled. They were so sweet.

Emma bolted up into a sitting position as soon as she saw Regina had cookie dough. "Gimme!" She made grabby hands.

Regina chuckled. It was like she was possessed by the child growing inside her. She handed the entire tub over to her with the spoon. "Don't eat too much," she cautioned.

Emma barely made a dent before conking out again.

Regina cautiously took the tub and spoon back, not wanting to wake the sleeping bear and trigger a full on moodswing. Just because she could deal with them didn't mean she wanted to.

* * *

August 5, 2012 was Regina and Emma's first wedding anniversary, and the day before the mark of Emma's 18th week of the pregnancy. Emma was noticeably showing by this point, and Regina couldn't stop touching her belly. She gave it kisses and talked to the baby growing within.

"You know, you were just a thought almost a year ago, and now… You're really on your way." Her voice became a whole other level of adorable when she was talking to the baby. It almost made Emma swoon. She couldn't wait to meet the little one and see Regina as a mommy from day one. Though she supposed this time she would get to be Mommy, and Regina would be Mama. Seemed fair.

* * *

September 22, 2012, Emma announced she was certain the baby would be a girl. They never had the sex revealed at any checkups, but she was positive she was carrying a girl this time. "We need names," she told Regina. "We don't want to go into the birth unprepared."

"Amelia?"

Emma scoffed. "Noooo."

"Alright… Bellamy?"

"How about something exotic and cool sounding? Like Evadesdemona?"

Regina stared at her. "We are not naming our child anything that has 'demon' in it."

Emma sighed. "Okay, fine, no Evadesdemona. Even though that would be an awesome freaking name! Isabella?"

"Yes. That's perfect! Isabella Symone."

Emma smiled. "I like it. Mills-Swan or Swan-Mills?"

"Swan-Mills, of course! Henry got my last name, so it's only fair your hyphenated surname goes to this one."

"Isabella Symone Swan-Mills it is." Emma smiled. "Oh!"

"What?"

"She just kicked," Emma told her. It wasn't the first time, but she knew Henry got excited every time.  
"Henry!" she called. "The baby kicked!"

Henry was there in an instant, putting his hand on her belly and waiting for it to happen again. There was another kick and his face lit up, all grins. "That's so cool!"

Regina smiled at him. "We have a name for her."

"Her? I'm going to have a sister?"

"Well, if you're not, we'll have to pick a different name." Emma chuckled. "But I'm pretty sure this is a girl in here."

Henry looked back and forth between Emma and Regina. "What's the name?"

"Isabella Symone Swan-Mills," Regina told him proudly.

Henry kissed Emma's belly. "Perfect. Hello, Isabella. It's your brother, Henry. I can't wait to meet you."

The two mothers melted. Isabella was still in the womb and Henry was already bonding with her. He was going to be a fantastic big brother.


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: There are trigger warnings for this chapter. To avoid spoilers for those who do not want/need said warnings, I have put them at the end of the chapter.**

Emma went into labor on January 7, 2013. It was a Monday, Henry's first day back at school after break. He didn't want to go, but they made him, which meant he was going to miss what he didn't want to miss.

Everything was running smoothly. Getting a room at the hospital was simple enough, Emma's contractions weren't too painful yet, and the baby was okay.

Was. Until it came time to push. Emma was nearly breaking Regina's hand as the older woman was singing praises that she was doing a great job. One moment Emma was instructed to push, and half a second later someone else had instructed her not to, and Emma didn't like the panic in their voice.

Something was missing. What was missing? Tears were in Emma's eyes from pain and exhaustion, and now she was confused. She looked at Regina. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, honey. I don't know. But you're doing great. You can do this. I'm right here, I've got you." With her free hand, Regina pushed strands of Emma's blonde hair away from her sweaty forehead. "Just breathe, focus on me."

Meanwhile, the doctors were murmuring frantically, pointing things out on the screens of different machines. "There's no fetal heartbeat."

Emma heard that. "What?!" she cried out in a panicky voice.

"Sssh." Regina rested her forehead against Emma's. "We've got this. Stay calm, honey. You're doing such a good job, just stay calm." She focused on soothing her before turning to the doctors and hissing at them,  
"What the hell do you mean there's no fetal heartbeat?"

"It stopped. She was instructed to push too soon. The baby has a nuchal cord and the push just made it worse."

"What does that even mean?"

"The umbilical cord is wrapped around the baby's neck. Too tightly now. We can try to cut it now, but without a heartbeat…"

"Do it!" Regina snapped. "I don't care what you have to do, just do it!" She returned her attention to Emma.

"Something's wrong." It wasn't a question.

"Don't think like that, Emma. We're so close. So close… Just stay calm." Regina squeezed her hand and forced a smile. "We've got this." She pressed a kiss to her lips.

In the end, the baby came out without a fetal heartbeat. The doctors did the best they could to resuscitate, but it was no use. The baby, a girl, had been dead before even being born. The doctors broke the news as gently as they could, but that did absolutely nothing to alleviate the crushing and devastating blow that it was.

"Do you still want to hold her?"

"I have to," Emma answered through her sobs. She had to see her, at least once. She had to name her.

Regina didn't want to let go of Emma's hand, but reluctantly did so when the doctor came over to place their dead daughter in Emma's arms. Regina couldn't look. But she couldn't not look. She couldn't turn away at the only chance she had to see her daughter, she deserved every ounce of love she had to give her, even now. Especially now.

"Oh, Isabella," Emma whispered. She would have been beautiful. Her heart ached in her chest. "I am so, so, sorry. I did the best I could for you."

Regina hesitantly reached out and touched the small tufts of hair on her head. It would have grown out to be just as dark as her own. She wondered what color her eyes were supposed to be. Brown, like her own? Or that sometimes blue sometimes green that Emma had? She would never know, because the girl never had the chance to even open her eyes.

Emma stroked a light finger down her cheek. She looked up at the doctors, a whirlwind of emotions coursing through her, but she had to make sure her daughter mattered. That they didn't just go through all of this for nothing. "If she has any vi-viable organs, p-please use them."

Regina looked at her, shocked. It was the last thing she would have expected. Regina was trying to calm down her inner voice that was commanding her to sue the hospital, and Emma was going to hand her over for parts. She understood, but at the same time, she had no idea how Emma had the strength to suggest it.  
"Are you sure?" one of the doctors asks. "We'll have to take her right now if any can be salvaged."

Emma pressed a kiss to Isabella's forehead. She looked at Regina, silently questioning her.

Regina picked up one of Isabella's little hands, pressing a kiss to it as tears rolled down her cheeks. This was it. This was all they got. They had to let her go, if even one baby's life could be saved because of her, it would be worth it. But she hated that they had to say goodbye before they got the chance to say hello. "I l-" she choked. She couldn't finish the sentiment. It was far too hard, it would make everything far more real.

They could barely keep any semblance of composure as they watched the doctors take their baby girl away, but once she was out of sight, it was completely gone. All they could do was try to hold on to each other as their world began crumbling apart.

 **AN: Trigger warnings for birth complications and stillbirth**


	21. Chapter 21

By April of 2013, Emma had pulled herself together a bit. She was still devastated, but she could at least function. Regina, on the other hand, could not. It had only gotten worse for her. Emma had to try to be strong enough for the both of them, and for the time being, was more of a parent to Henry than Regina was.

Poor Henry tried to cheer his mom up in many different ways, but he couldn't even get a smile out of her. He didn't take it personally, but because he had never seen her that way, he was scared for her.

Emma was scared for her as well, when Regina seemed to lose her appetite for everything and just stopped eating. She was starting to visibly lose weight, and there wasn't very much weight on her to be lost in the first place.

"Please eat." Emma stood in the doorway of their bedroom, holding a tray. "You don't even have to get out of bed. Just...please." She put the tray down, positioning it over Regina's lap.

Regina just turned her head away.

"Come on!" Emma begged. "Shrimp asopao is one of your favorites." It was a traditional Puerto Rican dish that had taken Emma forever to make, and one Regina would usually devour in a heartbeat.

Regina shook her head, looking anywhere but at the food or Emma.

"Kathryn's been calling," Emma tried, hoping for some sort of reaction. "She misses you."

Regina closed her eyes. "Please go away."

Emma took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, not wanting to snap at her. For better or for worse, she reminded herself. For better or for worse. "Fine. But the asopao stays." She turned and left the room, shaking her head. It was kind of ridiculous, Emma was the one who had been pregnant, yet Regina was the one acting like she was going through postpartum depression.

"Mama Emma!" Henry called.

Emma went to go find him.

"Can you help me with my homework?"

"Coming!" She followed his voice to his room.

Henry was sitting at the desk in his room, various papers spread out across it. He looked at her with a perplexed expression. "Since when are there letters in math?"

Emma laughed. "Ahh, Algebra. We've got this."

Henry looked at her, hope anew in his eyes. "We do?"

"Yup!" Emma found something to sit on beside him. "I'm actually good at this." She looked at his papers. "Oh, these are only finding x, sweet. These are the easiest. We've totally got this. So… this says 10 + x = 15, so you're supposed to tell what x is. What is 15-10?"

"5…"

"Good. So that means 10+5 = 15, right?"

"Uhh, yeah, duh."

Emma laughed. "Okay, smarty pants. So, if you've got that, you've got x."

Henry thought for a moment, and then it suddenly clicked. "x=5!"

"That's right. Now you've just got to show your work. Take 10 away from both sides, turning the 10 into nothing and the 15 into 5, then circle x=5."

Henry did as she said. Then he moved on to the next question. "Oh, is that all? The x is just another number but you have to tell people what number it is."

"Yep." Emma grinned. "You've got this."

Henry did a few more problems and then looked at Emma again. "Is Mom going to be okay?"

Emma sighed. "I hope so, Henry. She's obviously hurting a lot, but I think she'll be back to herself in time."

"How much time?" Henry asked. "It's been, like, three months already. And it really sucks, but… why does it suck so much harder for her?"

"I wish I knew, kid. I could help her a lot more if I knew. Right now all we can do is love and support her, try to make sure she has everything she needs."

"I know. I'm trying, I just… I want my mom back."

Emma hugged him close. "I know, sweetie. So do I." She pressed kisses to the top of his head. He was far too intuitive for an 11-going-on-12 year old.


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: There are trigger warnings for this chapter. To avoid spoilers for those who do not want/need said warnings, I have put them at the end of the chapter.  
**  
At the beginning of May, Regina seemed a bit more like herself. Emma and Henry were relieved. She was actually going to work again, not staying in bed for days at a time, only moving to go to the bathroom, like she had been doing. But there was one vital thing she still wasn't doing, that Emma was unaware of.

She got a call the day before Henry's birthday, from Regina's assistant. She told her Regina had collapsed at work and when she couldn't get her up, the only thing she could think of doing was calling an ambulance. She told her what hospital Regina was being taken to, and Emma was more than grateful Henry was out at a friend's. She didn't want to alarm him, and since Emma herself didn't know what would be awaiting her at the hospital, she didn't want to bring Henry into the unknown with her.

"Normally, I would ask if she's been eating, but I know she hasn't," the doctor informed her. "Her collapse was her body's last desperate act of self-preservation. Probably saved her life. She's clearly developed anorexia nervosa, which has caused anemia, and she's also severely dehydrated. We have her on an IV that is providing the nutrients she's been missing out on, which is also rehydrating her, she is still unconscious, but that can be a good thing for the moment. While her body's at rest she can't do anything to make her dehydration any worse. When her body starts to recognize it's no longer in danger, it will allow her to wake up. She has a few hours before I'd start worrying about it developing into a coma."

"Woah, woah, woah. I know this is all like every day, usual stuff for you, but you can't just say things like anorexia, anemia, dehydration, unconscious, and coma all at once without giving someone a moment to react. That's not just medical jargon, those are real things that happen to real people and the person you say they are happening to is a mother and a wife!"

"I apologize, I don't mean to come across as discompassionate. I was merely trying to inform you in the most succinct way possible. I know this must be a bit of a shock to you. You can see her, if you like, and I'll give you time to let all the information sink in."

Emma nodded, though she was starting to tune him out. Her thoughts were a whirlwind, those five words on repeat. Anorexia. Anemia. Dehydration. Unconscious. Coma. She followed where the doctor led her, to the room Regina was in. The reality of everything slammed into her like a semi truck, and she couldn't stop the tears from spilling over before the doctor left to give them privacy. She sank into the chair beside her, afraid to even take her hand. She looked so frail in that hospital bed, how had she not noticed? "This is my fault…" She should have done more to make her eat. Clearly, the woman couldn't be trusted to do so on her own. She should have spoon fed her - by force, if necessary. It would be better than this, her winding up in the hospital.

She'd thought Regina was better, that she'd finally recovered from losing Isabella. Now, Emma wondered if she was punishing herself for it. "What were you thinking?" she whispered. Was she punishing herself for living while their daughter didn't? Or was this somehow meant to punish Emma? Did she blame her for the loss? Emma knew if she hadn't pushed when she did, their daughter would probably be alive, but it was the damn doctors' fault for giving her mixed signals. No, Regina wasn't that vindictive. Sure, she had streaks of it sometimes, but it was never directed at Emma or anyone she truly cared about.

Emma was lost in thought, staring at the woman she loved through tear blurred eyes, with such an intensity that she no longer sensed the passage of time. It was an hour before her macabre reverie was broken by a slight movement and a small sound. Regina was waking up.

The raven-haired woman stretched a little, as if waking from a fitful nap, and opened her eyes. It took her a second to register Emma's presence, and then, once she saw her expression, she realized where she was. She instantly felt guilty, having a decent idea of what was going on.

"I thought you were okay," Emma stated in a broken voice. "I don't know how I never noticed… I should have noticed - "

Regina reached out and took one of her hands. "You didn't notice because I made sure you wouldn't," she admitted. "I didn't want you to know… I felt badly enough for making you and Henry worry about me, I wanted to stop hurting you with my own hurt, but I couldn't… I couldn't just get over it. So you couldn't know, I knew it would only make you worry again, and I couldn't bear it."

Emma let out a laugh of disbelief. "Well, I've got news for you, lady. You failed that one big time. Because now I have to watch you like a hawk, and don't think I'm above going to work with you or following you to the bathroom. And what sucks the most is tomorrow is Henry's birthday, and you'll probably still be here. Care to know just how bad a mess you've given yourself?"

Regina felt like she was going to cry, but nothing came out. She just squeezed Emma's hand as tight as she could manage in apology, feeling guilty. "Lay it on me," she choked out.

"This stunt has made you develop anorexia, anemia, dehydration, oh, and if you were unconscious for a few more hours, you would have been in a coma. Thankfully, the IV is helping to take care of that, but as soon as you're off it and I can take you home, you are going to eat three meals a day every single day and I am going to watch you eat every single bite of it."

"I'm so sorry, love. I didn't mean for it to get this out of hand. I thought I was in control. I needed to be in control of something, does that make sense? And after a while I just had no appetite or desire to eat, I felt fine, for the most part. Sometimes I'd get dizzy, but it would pass and I'd be fine."

"You've lost so much weight...that alone isn't healthy and I can't believe I just got used to seeing you look like this without realizing what was going on. Now you look like you might just blow away with a strong gust of wind. God, I… I can't even blame you because it's just as much my fault for not noticing as it is your fault for doing it in the first place. I'm - I'm just glad you're not dead." Fresh tears spilled down Emma's cheeks as she cupped one of Regina's with her free hand. "I'm not done with you yet."

Regina turned into Emma's hand, pressing kisses to her palm. "I'll get better, for real this time," she promised.

"I know you will. Because this time I'm here and not blind." Emma leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "What shall we do about Henry? He's at a friend's now, and it's a school night so it would seem very suspicious to tell him he can spend the night there. He's a smart kid, he'll know something's up."

"Have Kathryn or Ruby keep an eye on him. Er, better make it Ruby. She's not as invested in me as Kathryn is, and Kathryn might kill you for not calling her sooner. Ruby's closer to his age, too, I think she can keep him relaxed without making him suspect anything."

"Ruby it is." It was a good idea, Emma had to admit. She could have thought of it herself, if she weren't preoccupied with her stubborn and broken wife. "I'll give her a call, and be right back."

It took considerable effort for Regina to let go of Emma's hand, but she managed. Emma slipped out of the room long enough to make the call, and was back in no time at all.

Emma let out a sigh. "One less thing to worry about. Everything going on with you right now is enough to last the rest of my life."

Regina reached for her hand again. She needed Emma to be her anchor, to keep her strong.

Emma took her hand and pressed a kiss to it. "We're going to get you back on the right track. You're going to be my number one priority now. I'll do whatever it takes to help you recover from this."

"I know," Regina whispered. She managed a smile that wasn't quite genuine, but it showed she was trying.

 **AN: Trigger warnings for medical issues involving/caused by eating disorders**


	23. Chapter 23

It had taken some time for Regina to recover physically and emotionally, and Regina was there to help her every step of the way, even when she couldn't understand or got frustrated at some of the things she was going through. By Christmas, Regina was back to a healthy weight, had healthy eating habits, and was no longer in a depressive slump. She and Emma felt closer than ever, having gotten through the first true test to their marriage and relationship.

The birth and death day of their daughter was rapidly approaching, and instead of destructively saddening, remembering Isabella Symone Swan-Mills was bittersweet.

Henry even joked, "This could have been my first Christmas not being an only child. But since it's not, more presents for me!" Others might call it insensitive, but after everything they'd been through, Emma and Regina had to laugh. They were thankful to have Henry, even if they couldn't have Isabella, too. Even if the boy was growing like a weed and entering puberty.

They had an unexpected visitor, a knock on the door late in the evening after everyone, mostly Henry, was finished unwrapping their presents. Regina and Emma curiously went to the door together, while Henry remained on the floor preoccupied with one of his gifts. Regina opened it to reveal Kathryn.

"Oh, hey, Kat." Regina smiled at her. "What brings you here?"

"I have news. I was debating with myself for a while, trying to determine if it would be insensitive, but ultimately you're my best friend and I can't wait anymore."

"Uh, come in," Emma invited, curiosity piqued.

Kathryn came inside. "Can we go sit in the kitchen or something?" she asked.

"Sure," Regina chirped. She was curious, too. Especially because it was Christmas. What couldn't wait another day? She led the way to the kitchen, Emma and Kathryn close behind.

They all sat down, Emma and Regina on one side of the table, Kathryn across from them.

"So, what's this news?" Regina asked, her curiosity about to burst.

Kathryn laid her hands out, palms up, one by Regina and one by Emma.

Reading the cue, Regina and Emma each took one of Kathryn's hands.

"Are we doing a seance or something?" Emma joked, puzzled about why this was necessary.

Kathryn laughed. "No, no." She squeezed their hands. "I wish I had some fancy way to announce this, but I can't think of anything clever, so I'll just say it outright. David and I are having twins and we want you both to be godparents."

"You're pregnant?!" Regina squealed.

"With twins?" Emma's eyes nearly popped out of her head.

Kathryn grinned widely. "Yes, yes!" She squeezed their hands again in her excitement. "I tortured myself waiting to tell you because, well...it's nearly been a year since you lost yours and I didn't want to rub salt in the wound. But David and I think it would be really good for the both of you to be their godparents."

Regina and Emma smiled at each other. "Of course," they answered in unison.

"Great! I'm sorry I popped up unannounced, but I partly wanted it to be a surprise and I just couldn't wait any longer."

"Awww, I can't believe Jacob's going to be a big brother!"

"Big is right! He's 14, a Freshman in high school, already! I think he's planning on doing all the sports possible. He's already done football, and now he's doing wrestling. He has a build that makes it nearly impossible for him to wrestle anyone but Seniors fairly."

"Gee, must have an advantage, being the son of a personal trainer and all." Regina laughed. "Wow, I can't believe he's already a teenager."

"Less than five months from now, yours will be a teenager, too," Kathryn pointed out.

"I know," Regina groaned. "Just let me live in denial." She shook her head. "But I'm really happy for you."

"So am I," Emma told her with a smile. "Thank you for thinking of us, I feel honored." 


	24. Chapter 24

June 26, 2015 was an important day yet again. It was the day same sex marriage became legal for the entire United States. It was extra special for Emma and Regina, for it was the 9th anniversary of the day they had met.

"Okay, I knew this day was going to be important, but I didn't know it was going to be this important! This is fantastic!" Emma grinned, so excited and happy.

"I know. It's like a sign we were just meant to be." Regina sighed dreamily. She was so glad everyone who was in love could get married now. It wasn't legal worldwide, but countrywide was an impressive enough feat, considering so many states had homophobic jerks who wanted to go back to the Stone Ages. "I honestly wasn't even sure I'd be alive to see this happen." She wiped a joyful tear from her eye.

"You're only 44. Even if it didn't happen for another 40 years, you'd still be alive."

"You hope." Regina poked her tongue out at her. "You had less of a waiting time than I did to see this, miss 32."

"I think Henry wins, if we're going by youth. Kid's only 14."

Regina smiled for a whole different reason. "I am so proud of that boy." She leaned into Emma happily.

"How many times have I said he's smart? About time others saw it, too." Emma held her comfortably. "Jumping from 8th grade to 10th. I didn't think that was even allowed anymore."

"It's allowed in special circumstances. There are super child geniuses out there that graduate from universities at Henry's age or even younger."

"Okay, that's just unnatural." Emma laughed.

"Mooooms," Henry groaned in exasperation. "Stop gushing over me."

The women jumped, unaware of their son's presence. They looked up at him from the couch.

"That's our job," Regina protested.

"Hey, what happened to Mama Emma?" Emma asked.

"You're still Mama Emma, but it just takes so long to say Mom and Mama Emma when I can just say moms."

"But you didn't say moms," Emma teased with a smirk. "You said, 'moooooms'."

Henry shook his head and rolled his eyes. Then he saw what was on tv. "Finally!"

The women laughed. They had such a good son.

"Hey." Henry was connecting the dots. "Isn't this the same day you first met?"

"It is." Regina grinned at him. "Nine years ago today," she stated proudly.

"Double awesome." Henry pressed a kiss to each of their cheeks. "Maybe now less kids will have divorced parents and more will have happily married parents. I always thought I was lucky to have two moms."

"Awwww." They pulled him down onto the couch with them, squishing him with hugs and kisses. 


	25. Chapter 25

It was Henry that suggested Regina and Emma try for another baby. He brought it up January 7, 2017. "Today would have been Isabella's 4th birthday, and you'd be all clingy because she'd be starting kindergarten next year," he directed that last bit mostly to Regina.

"I was not clingy!" Regina defended. "I just...didn't want you to grow up."

"So, with her about to start school, and me getting close to graduating high school, you'd probably be itching with baby fever again. Thing is, I'm close to graduating high school, and there's no Isabella here. Mom, you don't know how to not be a mom anymore. You hardly talk about anything in your life before you adopted me. And Mama Emma, you learned how to be an awesome mom, but you missed the early parts. Twice now. I don't want you two to get all lonely and sad when I graduate and go to college. Plus, I kind of want to be the cool and awesome big brother that can scare away bullies because I'll pretty much be an adult. I know losing Isabella sucked big time, but I'm kinda worried the same thing, er, Mom's reaction, could happen again when I leave. So… I guess what I'm asking is if you'd consider trying to have a baby again sometime soon, 'cause I think it would be good for you."

Regina and Emma were stunned, never quite hearing a speech of that length come out of his mouth before. And the content of it was not something they would have expected. It touched them.

"I think...I think we'll need to think about it," Emma told him, looking over at Regina. "It's expensive, and we're older now. Mom's about to be 46 and I'll be 34 not long before you turn 16. Even if we had one right this second, we'd be 65 and 53 when the baby turns 20."

"And I'd be 35. It's just numbers. You could be 100 and have little 6 year olds running around, I've got plenty of godsiblings and honorary cousins to prove you love kids."

Regina smirked. "Oh, this will be such a fun conversation when it's about you giving us grandchildren. You make it sound so easy. But this is a big decision to make, so we do need some time to think about it."

"Well, can you time it so if you decide to that the baby will be born before I leave for college?"

Emma snorted. "Do you hear this kid?" she asked Regina with a teasing smile.

* * *

By the end of the school year, Henry was 16 and had just completed his Junior year.

"You've got mail, kid," Emma announced, dropping an envelope on his bed.

"Me?" Henry asked, puzzled. He never got mail unless it was credit card companies trying to get him to sign up for a student credit card.

"Unless some other Henry Mills lives here, yep. For you."

Henry opened it curiously and his eyes nearly popped out of his head when he read it. "Oh. My. God. I didn't think he was serious!"

Regina was drawn into the doorway next to Emma, curiosity getting the better of her. "What's going on?"

"Not sure yet."

Henry looked up at them. "My History teacher had us all write essays. He said he was going to submit them for scholarships, but I thought he was just joking! Like when he said if we all passed our test, he'd come to school dressed as Shakespeare."

Emma chuckled at that mental image. "Perhaps you didn't all pass."

"So, does this mean you have a scholarship?" Regina asked.

"Yes! $10,000 to study abroad at the University of Vienna in the 2018-2019 school year."

"Vienna? As in Vienna, Austria?" Regina asked.

"Uh-huh." Henry nodded, still amazed at what his teacher had done.

"That must have been some essay, kid." Emma beamed at him. She hugged him. "Proud of you."

"We decided we're going to try to have another baby, by the way," Regina announced. "This seems like a bigger deal, though."

Henry flew over to Regina and tackled her in a hug. "No, the baby is way, way more awesome! This could only be one year, siblings are for life!" He kissed her cheek. By this point he was nearly a head taller than her and had to bend down a little bit. He could even lift her up.

"Agh, Henry, stop that!" Regina groaned, absolutely hating the fact he was strong enough to lift her.

Emma giggled. "Put your mother down, Henry. She doesn't even like it when I pick her up, much less you."

He returned Regina to her feet. "Sorry, Mom. Just, two awesome things happening made me excited."

"I know." Regina smiled at him. "But if you could just stop growing, that would be great."

Henry laughed. "You've just got to start wearing higher heels to catch up."

"Don't encourage her!" Emma chided half-jokingly. "She already wears six inches and I don't want her to even attempt eight."

"When do they stop calling them heels and start calling them stilts?" Henry asked, not quite understanding how so many women could wear shoes like that.

"Let's not find out," Emma told him.

"So, are you going to use that scholarship?" Regina asked Henry.

"It would be a bit rude not to, right? And it's Europe, I've always wanted to go to Europe, and now I can. I'll probably be able to learn German in Austria, too."

"Please come home with a German accent," Emma playfully begged. "I wouldn't be able to take a single thing you said seriously, but it would be amazing."

"I'm sure I will." Henry looked between them. "So, which one of you is going to have the baby?"

"We haven't decided yet," Emma told him. "We'll probably take a few more months to decide."

"Okay." Henry nodded before trapping them both in a group hug. "I love you guys, you know that, right?"

They smiled and answered in unison, "Of course we do."


	26. Chapter 26

That September, Henry was starting his Senior year of high school, and Regina and Emma were still debating who would or should be the one to carry the baby.

"I could do it," Regina insisted. "I've never been pregnant before, either."

"Which is exactly why I should do it. If you were to lose it, man, your reaction to losing Isabella was scary enough and you weren't even the one who gave birth to her."

"I know." Regina looked down. "Maybe… Perhaps this time we should be equally prepared to lose this one as well as to raise it."

Emma kissed her temple. "Well, we know I've got a 50/50 shot of success. You're just one big question mark," she joked, wanting to lighten the mood.

"Okay, okay." Regina looped her arms around her neck. "You can be the carrier. But next time, it's my turn."

"Next time?" Emma asked, eyebrows flying into her hair.

"Henry's right," Regina admitted. "I do sort of want to be surrounded by kids."

Emma chuckled. "Are we going to turn into crazy grannies that keep having kids even though we're grannies?"

"I'd rather have a bunch of kids running around than a bunch of cats."

Emma laughed. "You are something else. I love you." She pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. Regina was crazy and she loved every bit of it.

* * *

That December, they did the same thing as last time. They used one of Regina's eggs and a sperm donor with similar features to Emma's, and once it was fertilized, Emma's womb became its home.

They went into it with some ground rules. They wouldn't get too excited, they wouldn't start thinking of names, and they wouldn't miss a single appointment. Emma also decided, cravings be damned, she wouldn't have anything that was even slightly considered unhealthy for the baby, and she was going to take prenatal vitamins throughout the entire pregnancy. Even though they were going to be far more prepared to lose the baby this time than they had been last time, Emma was planning on doing everything she could to prevent that. Henry wanted a sibling and she would give him one. With any luck, the baby would be born sometime in August or September of 2018, before Henry left for Vienna.

"We're going to be okay, whichever way this goes, right?" Emma asked Regina.

"Yes," Regina answered confidently. She took Emma's hand and gave it a squeeze. "We're more aware. We've already experienced loss. We can handle this."


	27. Chapter 27

Fiction is so wrong. Heartbreak isn't something only reserved for death, breaking up, and divorce. For a mother, the deepest source of heartbreak is realizing your only child has grown up, is going to college outside of the country, and no longer needs you.

At least, for this mother. From the outside looking in, there were no recognizable causes for heartbreak. Her marriage was in tact despite states yo-yoing on the legality of the term, she was secure in her job, financially stable, and she had a great, diverse group of friends. In fact, there was a huge impression of happiness that masked the heartbreak very well. To say only child was only a half truth.

She and her wife were expecting a baby. However, the couple was hesitant to begin imagining a future with two children (granted, one was nearly an adult at this point). They had done that before, got all excited about the first child they would get to raise from birth as a couple, only to be slapped in the face with a stillbirth.

Henry, the seventeen year old soon to be college student, was the biological child of Emma, the wife, who had given him up for adoption. Regina adopted him as a single mother. It was meant to be a closed adoption, but fate seemed to have other ideas. He was five years old when his two mothers met at a hotel room during a business stay for one, a leisure trip for the other. They hit it off right away and kept in touch after they parted ways. The topic of birthdays came up, the perfect segue for Regina to reveal that she had an adopted son. When Emma heard the age, the memory clicked and admitted she had given up a son for adoption, who would be the same age. Curious, Regina asked what the birth date was. The date Emma gave was Henry's birth date. Shocked and a bit excited, Regina showed her a recent picture, which caused the other woman to gasp and try to fight off tears. He looked so much like his father.

Five years later, in 2011, they married in New York within the first few months of it being legal in the state. Henry was ten by this point. It was the very opposite of what Regina's friends expected would happen if she ever met the people who had given Henry up. They had expected animosity and anger, accusations of abandonment. Instead, they had bonded over Henry and Regina couldn't help but be compassionate when she was eventually told Emma's reason why.

Emma had been the one to carry the baby they had lost, and she was the one currently pregnant. Regina had offered to be the one this time, when they had finally healed enough to try again, but Emma insisted due to how much the stillbirth had affected her when she wasn't even the one carrying. She made light of her insistence by saying she had a proven 50/50 shot of bringing a baby into the world and Regina was a big question mark.

Now the only thing Regina knew for certain was that another child would be leaving her. It was worse than the stillbirth. He would still be alive, but practically unreachable. She knew him, she raised him, she had the time to grow attached and love him. The baby hadn't had a chance to live and though the loss was strong, it was only the loss of a potential relationship, a potential life, not one that had been a solid consistent for the past seventeen years.

Regina sat on the floor of her study with all sorts of papers scattered around her. Art projects, report cards, certificates and rewards throughout the years from Henry's file. She saved just about everything. She was trying to digest the fact that aside from a few phone calls and holiday visits, the things that surrounded her would be the closest to home Henry would be for at least four years, and probably many more. She worried he might meet someone at school and decide to stay there with them instead of bringing them to America's backwards idea of a free country. She knew it probably wouldn't happen, but it wasn't impossible. Love found in youth can be solid and essentially forever, she had two friends that proved that. Married at about Henry's age straight out of high school and still together thirty years later.

She looked up at the sound of soft tapping at the doorway, breaking from her reminiscing. There stood her beautiful pregnant wife, looking even more youthful than she already was with her pregnancy glow. "You're reverse nesting," Emma observed with a tilted head, recognizing what was surrounding her wife as Henry's various school assignments and projects from all ages.

"This is about to be all I have."

"Just because he won't be here everyday doesn't mean he won't need us," Emma told her, not for the first time. "I wouldn't put it past him to ship us all his dirty laundry and expect us to wash it and ship it back."

Regina had to laugh. "That does sound like something he'd do. But that only means he's lazy, not that he isn't self-sufficient or independent."

"Yeah? Wait until he starts paying taxes. He's a smart kid, but everyone needs help from their parents sometimes."

Regina shook her head. "Sometimes just isn't good enough. I miss being needed all the time, to hold his hand while crossing the street, help him with his homework, make him soup when he's sick…"

"I still need you," Emma spoke softly. "Either way this -" she gestured to her belly "- goes, I'm going to need you a lot. I still don't know how to change a diaper or anything else that comes before age five, and maybe I won't need to. And if I won't need to it's going to kill me because I can't stop thinking of potential names. I know we promised not to get too attached early, but I can't quite help it."

Regina stood and carefully made her way out of her nest, as Emma called it, to hug her wife. "I'm sorry, you should be priority right now and I'm being insensitive."

Emma hugged her in return with a small laugh. "Oh, I think you're being quite sensitive. My feelings aren't suddenly more valid than yours just because I'm pregnant. I'd probably be in the same boat as you had I actually raised Henry his entire life, been more of a mother than a stepmother to him. I understand pieces, though. Henry is your constant here, your stability and control. Him leaving shakes things up. This baby isn't a guarantee and even though ours is still very much alive, no marriage is a guarantee. You're the older one so there's always been that fear of me getting bored with you, but I'll remind you I have no other family besides you and Henry, plus the baby if we're lucky."

"Why are you so good at reading me?" Regina groaned, hiding her face in her neck.

"Besides being married to you for the past seven years and dating you nearly five years before that?" Emma asked with a smile as she ran her fingers through her hair.

"Where did that time go?" Regina sighed wistfully. "You were a young 23 and I was a relatively young 35, now you're a young 35 and I'm an old bat of 47."

"Would you stop that?" hissed Emma playfully. "You know full well you look a decade younger than your age, not that 47 is 'old bat' material anyway." She lightly pinched Regina's side.

"Hey, Moooooom!" called the deep 17 year old voice from upstairs. "I think I clogged the toilet again!"

Emma snickered. "Didn't I tell you he still needs you? Poor kid still hasn't figured out how to work a plunger."

Regina released her with a smile. "Or to use a decent sized amount of toilet paper, but I'm afraid his potty training days are over and that can't be helped." She shook her head before calling back up, "Coming!"


	28. Chapter 28

September 1, 2018, they were at it again. Emma was in labor, it was time to go to the hospital, and this time Henry insisted on coming with. He would be leaving for Vienna in less than a week and he wanted to be there, whatever the outcome.

He held one of Emma's hands and Regina held the other, and this time, there were no contradicting directions from doctors. This time, they requested just one. That was all they really needed, anyway. And the one they got was competent.

The labor was long and exhausting, the baby was taking its sweet time coming out, but the important part was this time, the baby came out alive.

Regina didn't think she had ever been so happy to hear a crying baby. "We did it!" She pressed a kiss to Emma's sweaty forehead, happy tears rolling down her cheeks.

Emma cried tears of relief and exhaustion. She was so, so happy.

"Good job, Mama Emma." Henry smiled at her.

"Who wants to cut the cord?" the doctor asked.

Regina looked at Henry with a smile.

"Me?" Henry asked, surprised.

Regina nodded.

"I guess I am," Henry told the doctor. He let go of Emma's hand to move closer to the doctor and the baby, and did as he was instructed.

"You have a beautiful baby girl," the doctor told Emma and Regina. "Just going to get her all washed up and you can hold her."

"Another girl." Emma smiled. It was like the universe was trying to make up for what it had so cruelly taken from them.

"Another girl." Regina kissed her cheek. "What shall we name her?"

"Abela," Henry suggested. "Abela is Hebrew for breathing."

"Oh, Henry," Emma breathed. "That's perfect." She looked at Regina. "Abela Isabella."

Regina nodded. "That is perfect," she agreed. She looked at Henry. "Thank you."

"Abela Isabella Swan-Mills. I love it." Emma couldn't wait to see their daughter.

"You're welcome." Henry smiled, glad it all worked out. He felt honored he basically got to name her. He was also excited to officially be a big brother, even if he had to leave the country soon.

The doctor returned with the baby a moment later. "Okay, mommies." She smiled pleasantly. "You've got a healthy 7 pound baby girl."

Emma looked at Regina. "You can hold her first."

Regina looked at her, surprised. "Are you sure?"

Emma nodded.

"Alright." She gently took the baby from the doctor, carefully supporting her head and body. "Oh, hello." She smiled widely down at her, a happy tear rolling down her cheek. "Hello, Abela." Big brown eyes looked up at her curiously. Regina gasped. "She has my eyes." She smiled at Emma. "If you don't take your turn now you won't get a chance to."

Emma laughed. She found the button that raised the top half of the bed up and held her arms out, ready to take her daughter.

Regina carefully passed Abela to her wife.

Emma took Abela in her arms, making sure to support her properly. "Look at you. Abela Isabella Swan-Mills." She smiled. "You may have Mama's eyes, but I think you're going to be a blondie, yes I do." She carefully stroked the tip of her pinky along her cheek. "Oh, but I think you've got Mama's cheekbones, too."

Henry laughed. Babies made his parents talk funny. But he loved it. "She have my nose?" he asked teasingly.

"You know...I think she might," Emma answered with a laugh. Then she sighed. "I'd love to just keep holding her, but I'm exhausted. Henry?"

"Oh. Uh…" Henry wasn't used to holding babies. He wasn't even sure he'd ever held a baby in his life.

"I'll help you," Regina told him. She took Abela from Emma and carried her over to Henry, then assisted him in properly holding his baby sister. 


	29. Chapter 29

September 1, 2028 was Abela Isabella Swan-Mills' 10th birthday. Henry and his fiance, Gwen, came home to celebrate and also to share some news with Regina and Emma.

"Henry!" A little five year old boy with dark hair crashed into Henry's legs.

"Oh my goodness, is this Sami? You're so big!" Henry bent down to hug his little brother. "Where's the birthday girl?"

Bigger feet came running. "Henry!"

Henry smiled and released Sami. "Abela! You've gotten big, too!" He moved over to her and gave her a big hug. "Happy birthday! Where's moms?"

"In the nursery with Amelia."

Henry smiled and took Gwen's hand, leading her there. "Moms!"

"Henry! Gwen!" Emma hugged each of them happily. "You made it!"

"You know I try to make it for all my siblings' birthdays."

"Key word being 'try'. You don't always manage to."

Henry rolled his eyes. "Hey, Mom."

Regina looked up from the sleeping baby girl in her arms and smiled. "Hello, Henry."

Henry looked at Gwen and then back at them. "Well, this seems like the most fitting place, so here goes…"

Gwen smiled nervously. "I'm pregnant."

Emma smiled. "Awww!" She gave her another hug. "Congrats, guys."

Regina started laughing and shook her head.

"What?" Henry asked.

"So am I."

Henry's jaw dropped. "Didn't Mama Emma like just have Amelia not even a year ago? And...And… you're 58!"

Regina chuckled. "I know that. But you called it, I'll probably be 100 with little 6 year olds running around."

"I guess we really are the crazy grannies that have kids while being grannies, now," Emma stated. "How far are you, Gwen?"

"About 4 months," Gwen answered.

"Dare I ask, Mom?" Henry looked at Regina.

"Just 2," Regina told him.

"Okay, so...let me do a count here for a second. There's me, 27, today is Abela's 10th birthday, Sami is 5, Amelia is...what, like 10 months? And in another 8 months or so there will be another one."

"Two," Emma corrected.

"Two?! Mom. Twins? Really? At your age?"

"I can handle it. According to most people, I don't look my age at all. I'm healthy, I can handle this. I handled Sami just fine, and that was only five years ago, dear."

Henry laughed. "You really are nuts. But I love you."

"So, when's the wedding?" Emma asked. "We've kinda been waiting like forever."

"I was thinking...June 26th," Henry smiled.

Regina and Emma smiled knowingly at each other.

"That's sweet," Regina told him.

"It was actually my idea," Gwen stated. "I admire your relationship so much, even just what I've been told of it, but when I see you together it's even stronger. I can only hope Henry and I last as long as you have. 20 something years and you're still together."

"So do we." Emma kissed each of their cheeks.

"Oh, Miss Amelia needs a diaper change." Regina looked at Henry. "I think future Daddy needs some practice."

Gwen smirked at Henry. "Go on, future Daddy."

Henry groaned. "You suck."


End file.
